Elijah McClain Cause of Death: How did Elijah McClain Die?

Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old African American man died from complications from a ketamine injection.

He was injected by paramedics after he was confronted and left unconscious by police in Aurora, Colorado while walking home from a convenience store on August 24, 2019.

After receiving the ketamine, McClain’s condition deteriorated and he went into cardiac arrest.

The paramedics then began performing CPR and transporting him to the hospital. However, McClain never regained consciousness and was declared brain-dead three days later.

The cause of death was ruled as “undetermined” but the coroner listed “excited delirium” as a contributing factor.

The use of ketamine by paramedics in this incident has been controversial. While it is commonly used in emergency medical settings to sedate agitated or combative patients, the amount given to McClain was much higher than the standard dosage.

The McClain family reached a $15 million settlement with the city of Aurora in the civil rights lawsuit filed in response to McClain’s violent arrest and subsequent death in November 2021. According to police, it is the largest police settlement in Colorado history.