Jesus Lopez Barcenas
Jesus Lopez Barcenas was 36. On December 27, 2024, campus and Boulder police officers restrained him after a struggle at a University of Colorado Boulder building, and a paramedic sedated him with droperidol. Paramedic Edward McClure then restrained him face down on a gurney in an ambulance, where he went into cardiac arrest, and he died at Boulder Community Hospital two days later. The Boulder County coroner classified the death as a homicide, citing sudden cardiac arrest after the struggle, prone positioning, restraints and a sedative. The district attorney has charged McClure, who denies wrongdoing, and said the officers did not commit a crime; the family was described as devastated.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by staff (disputed). The Boulder County coroner classified the death as a homicide, citing a physical altercation, prone positioning, restraints and a sedative, and the district attorney charged the paramedic who gave the sedative while finding the officers committed no crime; the second account adds that the coroner said methamphetamine contributed and the paramedic denies wrongdoing.
Reported by: Boulder County Coroner's Office (medical examiner or coroner); Boulder County District Attorney's Office (outside investigators).