Before Floyd, a Black man screamed ‘I can’t breathe’ then died

Two months before George Floyd uttered the words that would dominate Black Lives Matter demonstrations, another Black man in California died after screaming “I can’t breathe” while multiple officers restrained him as they tried to take a blood sample, according to records and a video.

Edward Bronstein, 38, was taken into custody by California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers on March 31, 2020, following a traffic stop. Floyd was killed by police in Minneapolis on May 25 of that year as he, too, repeatedly told officers “I can’t breathe” as an officer knelt on his neck and two others held him down.

A nearly 18-minute video, taken by a CHP sergeant at the Altadena station, was released Tuesday after a judge’s order to make it public. Bronstein’s family has filed a federal lawsuit against the officers, alleging excessive force and a violation of civil rights. The family is also calling for the officers to be criminally charged by the Los Angeles County district attorney.