sethammons is saying (I believe) that the defense of &quot;the choke hold didn&#x27;t literally kill the man&quot; is not a defense in a criminal case. The action, though not the direct cause of death, directly contributed to triggering the underlying condition that precipitated the victim&#x27;s death.<p>-&gt; Any person that has experienced a chokehold, knows that if you can&#x27;t breath, you can&#x27;t move air, you can&#x27;t say anything, not even &quot;I can&#x27;t breathe&quot; 1 time.<p>This is also a little misleading. In a past life, I had to certify in combatives training and you most definitely can pass out from a choke hold (the kind applied in this case) and should the applier of the choke hold not release they can, exogenous of intentions, kill the person. As mentioned, all that doesn&#x27;t matter though.