Family Suspects Carol Anne Gotbaum Was Manhandled

The family of Carol Ann Gotbaum wants answers about the 45-year-old Manhattan resident's death while in police custody at Phoenix's Sky Harbor Airport last Friday. Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum, who was Gotbaum's stepmother-in-law, said, "We are not jumping to any conclusions, but the circumstances surrounding Carol's death appear to be unusual enough to raise serious questions and warrant a thorough investigation."

The mother of three was scheduled for a connection to Tucson, where she was to check herself into alcohol rehabilitation. When she arrived at the gate, the flight was closed - Gotbaum had gone to lunch and missed the boarding cut-off time, which is 15-minutes before the flight. She was booked onto another flight, but representatives of the airline (Mesa Airways which works with US Air) said that Gotbaum was very upset and that they were unable to calm her down, so they called security. When police approached her, she was heard saying, "I'm not a terrorist! I'm a sick mom! I need help!" and was seen punching and kicking at the officers. She was then taken to a police holding cell at the airport and died about thirty minutes later, seemingly strangling herself with her handcuffs. From the Daily News:

Phoenix Police Department spokesman Sgt. Andy Hill said Gotbaum was left unsupervised only between five and 10 minutes. He described the shackles as a 16-inch long chain, which when attached to handcuffs, is about 24 inches long.

"We still do not know how Ms. Gotbaum was able to manipulate the handcuffs to the position she was in. But when she was found, her handcuffs were in front and the shackle was still attached to her handcuffs. The chain was not wrapped around her neck. It was pulled against the front of her neck area," Hill said.

That explanation did not float with the lawyer hired by the Gotbaum family; Michael Manning told the Post, "Are you kidding me? You really think it happened this way?" The lawyer added, "This is both shocking and disturbing... You don't do this with a woman as slight of build as her and who was emotionally distraught. You don't put someone in a choke hold, you don't handcuff them, you don't shackle her to a bench, and you sure don't leave them alone."

The Post also reports that Gotbaum was "emotionally volatile" for years. A police report from November 2006 noted cops responded to a 44-year-old woman who tried to overdose on pills in their West 95th Street home and that recently Gotbaum "tried to kill herself in an unknown manner."

Gotbaum's autopsy was postponed until today, because the family requested an independent pathologist to be present. Sources told the Daily News the preliminary cause is "positional asphyxiation." The Phoenix police are also reviewing surveillance tapes from the concourse.

And Slate's Explainer looks at whether it's possible to strangle yourself with a pair of handcuffs (apparently it is).

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in News on October 2, 2007 2:16 PM

Comments [rss]

paolonutuni

Police brutality at airports is out of control. Especially when the police beat up/kill young women and mothers. This is similar to the police beating of the young woman at Reagan National Airport in DC except she suffered brain damage and is still alive. My thoughts and prayers go out to Carol Ann Gotbaum's family. http://youtube.com/watch?v=XPNmxZwhMag

guest

Arizona guest...what a good nazi christian you must be.

How about 'judge not lest ye be judged' or 'love thy neighbor'?

What exactly did she 'have coming' besides treatment at an alcoholic rehab center? You astound me with your petty ignorant vindictiveness.

From all the comments I read from arizonans, I'm shocked at the degree of hatred you have been harboring towards New Yorkers. I'm surprised that on September 11, 2001 you didn't all jump for joy and say 'yippee, 2800 self-entitled New Yorkers out of the way'

Many of us have been reading comments like yours, and made mental notes to avoid Arizona at all costs, the way people of intelligence avoided Mississippi during the 1950s...

guest

After reading all of this - does the truth matter to any of you, with your rants and theories anyhow? No one wants someone to die in this way, but I really do doubt that she was strangled - I mean she was a pain but hardly a "rough" arrest for all the talk of her being "thrown to the floor" etc...why would anyone take the time to even put her in a choke hold? Frankly, I think she choked on her vomit.

And if you throw a drunken rant in an airport and resist arrest - of course you will be cuffed and arrested, no matter what color you are or how much you weigh. Courtney Love had pretty much the same treatment, and you can't tell me no one wants to strangle her.

It's very sad this happened, but the family judging from such a distance when they basically dumped their old problem child on everyone else takes the cake.

guest

What race were the officers? Were they black or latino? It doesn't take much to figure out what they did to this attractive white woman. Will someone please publish pictures of the men involved?

guest

Sounds like an unstable nut. What else were the cops supposed to do, sit her down and talk about her feelings? They're cops not Psychiatrists, nutty people who are flipping out get cuffed, end of story.

guest

I am from Arizona and I think she sets a bad example of how to act in public. Tantrums are not cute when you are pushing 50. The Bible says you get what you sow. She obviously had it coming. Karma is a killer.

guest

I'm a rancher in New Mexico, so don't give me any lip about being pro-criminal.

This is a 105 lb woman, mother of 4.

Choke hold and she died.

She was murdered, plain and simple.

The rest is coverup.

Hope y'all enjoyed the flight.

guest

Why is it certain individuals here want to believe that there is only ONE anti-semitic poster? As if...

AHT

The astroturfing in here is really getting out of control. Gothamist, you would do well to see how the Nielson Haydens over at Making Light deal with this.

And given the apparently inability of the authorities in this situation to obtain medical treatment for someone who was obviously not in a right state, I think I'll pass on flying through Arizona any time soon. God only knows what they'd do if I had a diabetic episode -- probably throw me in the drunk tank.

guest

THIS IS A GUEST COMMENT WITH NO DEROGATORY REFERENCE TO SOMEONE BEING WHITE OR JEWISH...

BYE BYE STUPID DUMBASS DRUNK BITCH!!!

GOOD BYE STOOPID DRUNK PERSON WHO THREW A HISSY FIT IN AN AIRPORT!

BETSY YOU MUST BE PROUD!

CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!!

guest

These anti-semite comments smell like the comments Reality Czech makes when the topic is about blacks or hispanics.

I'm sure Reality Czech is afraid to offend his boss the mailroom manager, who happens to be Jewish, so RC posts his comments anonymously.

guest

BYE BYE DRUNK GRINGO BITCH!!!!!!

haha Isn't Gothamist great? It serves as a forum for racists of every creed, race and religion!

guest

#29 You hit it on the nail...!

guest

goodbye drunk bitch

lesson learned...yoga class does not make you able to escape handcuff

guest

They "suspect" she was manhandled? Perhaps she was gang raped also? I hope the forensics team looks into this...no pun intended.

guest

Its funny that the family sent her to rehab alone.

I think the truth is that she was scheduled to go to Canyon Ranch in Tucson and probably would have missed a scheduled massage and didn't want to pay for a rescheduling. There are no alcohol rehab centers in Tucson, only the posh Canyon Ranch.

http://www.canyonranch.com/resorts/tucson-home.aspx

guest

she choked on her own vomit.

it happens all the time with drunks.

guest

#25, how do you think the police killed Carol Anne Gotbaum?

No one is asking you to stop pointing out the truth, but you're not actually giving up any theories of what you think actually happened to her, either.

Who killed her and how?

guest

Phoenix, AZ = conservative shithole.

they make Texas look good.

Tim N.

#13... I actually see your point. But it should show you what the Phoenix police are doing if they are making our Finest look good by comparison (and, truth be told, I think they do... at least they can cover their tracks better than this).

The NYPD guys said not only would they never have left a distressed person alone, video or not, but they would have called the paramedics immediately. I'm sure she was doing something wrong. I'm also getting more and more sure she is not to blame for her death.