Colin Kaepernick to pay for private autopsies for Americans killed in police-related deaths

Know Your Rights Camp also defines a police-related death in statement

File: Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp organisation announces new initiative that will pay for private autopsies of Americans killed in police-related deaths (AP)

Colin Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp organisation has announced an “Autopsy Initiative” to provide free second autopsies for the families of victims of police-related deaths.

The organisation unveiled the initiative to provide “a second autopsy free-of-charge for victims’ families who have lost their loved ones due to a police-related death” in a statement on its website on Wednesday.

“The services offered through the Initiative include the completion of a second autopsy, disclosure of preliminary findings, and issuance of the final autopsy report,” it added.

The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback’s organisation also defined a police-related death in its statement as one that “occurs when an individual is harmed by police officers while using deadly force which results in the individual’s death.”

“A police-related death includes in-custody deaths. In-custody deaths include deaths that arise during contact with law enforcement officers during arrest, pursuit, booking, transport, or incarceration. Therefore, pre-custody deaths are included within in-custody deaths,” it added.

The Autopsy Initiative includes a team of board-certified pathologists.

“Our board-certified pathologists will work objectively, efficiently and, diligently while relying on established forensic principles when conducting the second autopsy. Our pathologists will actively seek the truth to provide the victims’ families with the most medically sound cause of death,” the statement said.

“The Initiative is aware that losing a family member due to police-related death is a tragic and heartbreaking experience. The Initiative seeks to be a resource to victims’ family members by providing confidence in the forensic procedures and comfort in knowing the pathologists will conduct the autopsy with neutrality,” it added.

It added: “Our board-certified pathologists are highly experienced and respected in their field and dedicated to uncovering the truth about the victim’s cause of death.”

Mr Kaepernick founded Know Your Rights Camp in 2016. Its main objective is to “advance the liberation and well-being of Black and Brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass-mobilization and the creation of new systems that elevate the next generation of change leaders,” the website pointed out.