Twenty-nine-year-old Alonzo Ashley was killed during a struggle with police officers at the Denver Zoo in Colorado. The Coroner ruled his death a homicide, meaning Ashley died at the hands of others. The questionable circumstances around Ashley’s death were one of numerous cases that helped inspire the national Black Lives Matter movement founded in 2013. On July 18, Alonzo Ashley was at the Denver Zoo with his girlfriend, who was identified only as Elana. At around 5 p.m., Ashley began showing signs of heat exhaustion or heat stroke. He sat down on the ground by the elephant exhibit and soon afterward appeared to be unconscious. His condition caused a Zoo security guard to raise an alarm and approach Ashley. At first, Ashley was unresponsive, but after a few minutes, he got up, claimed he was just hot, and wanted to be left alone. He then walked over to a drinking fountain. Ashley put his head under the fountain to cool off, and the security guard asked him to stop. Confused by the guard’s request and his recent unconscious status, Ashley acted out angrily against the guard. He began throwing trash cans around and behaving erratically. This sudden change in his behavior caused the guard … Continue reading Alonzo Ashley (1982-2011)