Family sues NYPD over fatal scuffle that began with a tossed beer can
The relatives of Shelton Ennis, who died after a June 2025 encounter with NYPD officers over an empty beer can, have filed a civil rights lawsuit alleging excessive force.
On June 26, 2025, Shelton Ennis was stopped by NYPD officers Karl Yelenic and Marc Leandre after police observed him throwing an empty beer can near Riverside Drive in Upper Manhattan. The officers questioned him repeatedly about the can and his identification, and when Ennis ran, Yelenic tackled him from behind. Body-camera footage shows Ennis lying face-down, unconscious, before officers handcuffed him and summoned emergency services.
He lost his pulse in the ambulance and was pronounced dead at Mount Sinai Morningside Hospital; the medical examiner classified the cause of death as hemopericardium from blunt chest trauma, labeling it a homicide. The state attorney general’s investigation found insufficient evidence to charge the officers, but Ennis’s brother Aaron, represented by Fredson Statmore Bitterman, filed a lawsuit alleging civil-rights violations, excessive force, and unlawful stop. The case highlights ongoing scrutiny of NYPD use-of-force policies.
Why it matters
The lawsuit raises questions about police use of force and accountability in New York City.
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