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Gary Strobridge 'needed help,' when he died after arrest, family says in obituary

Jeff Murray

The family of an Elmira man who died late last month after being taken into custody by city police officers has posted an obituary that lays the blame for his death on local authorities.

Gary Strobridge, 49, died at a Syracuse Hospital after he was arrested Aug. 22 by Elmira police officers who were responding to a report of an emotionally disturbed person.

Strobridge, who lived on Horner Street on the city's Southside, resisted arrest and had to be subdued with a taser, police said.

He was taken to a local hospital, where he was calm for a time, but then became disruptive again and had to be restrained a second time, according to police.

A memorial was created outside the house on Horner Street in Elmira where Gary Strobridge lived. Strobridge died following his arrest last week by Elmira police officers.

At that time, Strobridge became unresponsive and was transferred to Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse, where he later died.

In his obituary, posted Wednesday, Strobridge's family called for "Justice For Gary!"

"It was our son today, tomorrow it could be yours. People in the community need to call for change. When he needed help that night, he did not get it. What number do we need to call when people are in trouble without fear of getting hurt or even worse? You people will never know the hurt and heartache you have caused us by your actions."

Gary Strobridge

Immediately following the incident, the Elmira Police Department contacted New York State Police and the Chemung County District Attorney's Office asking for an outside investigation into what happened.

More:Elmira man who died after arrest remembered as quiet, calm

Since that time, the state Attorney General's Office claimed jurisdiction over the matter under an executive order signed in 2015 by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. 

That order authorizes the attorney general to serve as special prosecutor in "incidents where a law enforcement officer causes the death of an unarmed civilian, or where there is a significant question as to whether the civilian was armed and dangerous."


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