Oakland police release footage of ex-Raider Doug Martin’s arrest before his death

OAKLAND, Calif. - Oakland police on Monday released body camera and surveillance video showing officers taking former Raiders running back Doug Martin into custody shortly before he died at a hospital.

Two 911 callers alert Oakland police

What we know:

The incident began with a 911 call in October from a woman on Ettrick Street in Oakland’s Chabot Park neighborhood.

"Somebody’s breaking into my house, and it’s my second time," the woman told a dispatcher, referring to an incident two years earlier in which she exchanged gunfire with intruders who stole jewelry.

During the October incident, Martin’s mother also called 911. She told dispatchers her son — who previously played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Raiders — had left their home on the same street and was experiencing a mental health and medical emergency.

"Does he take medication?" a dispatcher asked.

"He takes sleeping pills and hasn’t slept for three days," his mother responded.

When Oakland police arrived, they saw Martin inside a home.

Surveillance video shows Martin entering a neighboring backyard and yelling incoherently. At one point, he identifies himself by name and screams, "Help me!"

He then breaks into the home through a back door, with officers close behind.

Police found Martin inside a bathroom. After several minutes, he came out and officers took him into custody after a brief struggle.

"We’re going to help. Talk to us," an officer said.

Martin continued yelling, prompting another officer to tell him to "Relax."

It is not clear from the video whether officers used force to control him.

"Hey Doug, we’re here to help you," officers can be heard saying. "Calm down, buddy."

Agitation, then silence

What they're saying:

Martin soon falls silent. Officers then discuss what happened.

"He was wild, wild, wild, you know, calmed down, ran straight through that fence," one officer says in the video.

"Yeah, he bailed through the fence, came through here and thrashed in the bedroom," another officer says.

A third officer suggests Martin might be exhausted.

Paramedics later determined Martin was not breathing. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The Alameda County coroner has not yet determined the cause of death.

Adante Pointer, a civil rights attorney who does not represent Martin’s family, said the video raises several questions.

"We see them move him into a quasi-recovery position, which is him laying kind of on his side, but this is after you don’t hear him talking or even breathing anymore," Pointer said.

Ed Obayashi, a use-of-force expert, Modoc County sheriff’s deputy and special prosecutor in that county’s district attorney’s office, said it is unclear whether officers applied compressive force.

"We don’t know whether or not compressive force, in other words sheer body weight, was applied and, if so, for how long," Obayashi said.

Cause of death not yet known

What we don't know:

Martin’s family and attorney declined to comment. They said they are awaiting the results of an independent autopsy, as well as an analysis to determine whether he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE — a degenerative brain disease that has been found in some former football players who experienced repeated head trauma.

Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on X @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan

OaklandCrime and Public Safety