Rev. Al Sharpton to give eulogy at Irvo Otieno's funeral

March 28 (UPI) -- Rev. Al Sharpton will deliver the eulogy for Irvo Otieno, the 28-year-old Black man who died earlier this month while being admitted to the hospital in police custody.

Ben Crump Law, the law firm retained by Otieno's family less than two weeks ago, announced in a statement Monday that Sharpton, founder of the National Action Network, will give the eulogy Wednesday and attorney Ben Crump will make a national call for justice for Otieno.

The funeral is to be held at the First Baptist Church of South Richmond in North Chesterfield, Va.

Otieno died March 6 while being admitted in police custody for treatment at Central State Hospital in Dinwiddie County, Va..

Hospital surveillance video released last week shows several sheriff's deputies and medial staff drag a handcuffed Otieno into a room at the medical facility before piling on top of him prior to his death.

Seven Henrico County deputies and three Virginia hospital workers have been charged with second-degree murder over the incident.

Police had said officers had attempted to restrain Otieno after he had become combative during the intake process, while Ann Cabell Baskervill, the attorney for Dinwiddie County, described Otieno's death as a "horrible miscarriage of justice."

Ben Crump Law said Otieno's death "echoes that of George Floyd nearly three years ago."

Floyd, a Black man, was killed by police on May 25, 2020, in Minneapolis, Minn., sparking protests throughout the country against police brutality and racial inequality. Former police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder by a jury in August of 2021 and sentenced to more than 20-years' imprisonment over Floyd's death.

Sharpton has previously eulogized other Black men who were killed by police, including Floyd, Tyre Nichols and Patrick Lyoya.