TAMPA – No doubt you’ve heard the adage: a picture is worth a thousand words. A picture of 62-year-old Nick Christie could be worth thousands of dollars when a jury sees it.

The photo shows the Ohio man restrained inside the Lee County Jail with his body covered in pepper spray.

“This photo is a picture of a man who is strapped to a chair naked inside a jail for hours with a hood over his face. That evokes thoughts of being tortured,” says Cleveland-based lawyer Nick DiCello who represents the Christie family.

The photo, which was obtained by FOX 13’s investigative unit, was taken in the final hours of Christie’s life.

The District 21 Medical Examiner ruled his death was a homicide because he had been restrained and sprayed with pepper sprayed by law enforcement officers. But to this day, nobody has ever been charged with a crime, and the Lee County State Attorney cleared the sheriff’s office of any wrong doing.



  1. Animby says:

    It’s good to see some results from that Homeland Security grant…

  2. Lou Minatti says:

    This appalling story has been bumping around in the blogosphere for a few days, but it’s still not widely known. Mr. Christie was effectively waterboarded with pepper spray. It was extreme torture. This is some very serious shit and justice needs to be served for his family.

    • NoNoBadDog says:

      If you do not know what waterboarding is, then you should not be making such accusations. What is the source of your information on which you base your wild-ass claim of waterboarding? Do you even know what waterboarding is?

      • Lou Minatti says:

        He was suffocated with pepper spray while bound and gagged. In addition to the psychological torture he was killed via a method that include excruciating pain. Why you are nitpicking over the definition is beyond me, but knock yourself out.

  3. Nickelthrower says:

    Greetings,

    I fear the police much more than I fear criminals. At least with a criminal you can fight back but there is nothing you can do when it is the police.

    Pigs, nothing but pigs.

  4. Likes2LOL says:

    Remember Fox News’s Megyn Kelly:
    Pepper spray is “a food product, essentially.”

    They thought he needed spicing up?

  5. msbpodcast says:

    Say it me now “Florida… Our most fucked up state..

    Little Tim Henson must be so proud…

  6. Harry says:

    Florida Florida Florida, when are you people going to learn.

  7. Publius says:

    Torture is the sport of Kings and Our Finest

  8. Publius says:

    Obama’s FBI is very busy protecting rented movies from being copied.

    Obama’s FBI will get around to protecting the citizens from police who commit torture and murder very soon now.

    Top men are on it.

    • Somebody says:

      Oh, come on!

      They are busting pot farmers aren’t they?

      Just like Obama promised …… not ….. to do?

  9. Publius says:

    >the Lee County State Attorney cleared the sheriff’s office of any wrong doing

    Dear Floridians: Impeach this public official

    This is exactly what impeachment is for

  10. Rudedog says:

    Why are people saying he was gagged? That is a breathable mask to stop him from spitting on others? Please don’t be as ignorant as the police are in this case.

    Now on to the real story of them pepper spraying him while bound to that chair, why?

  11. Frances Moseley says:

    I used to walk with a friend for exercise. I had a fanny pack I kept my car keys and ID in. It was during the summer so I also had a dry washcloth to wipe the sweat off my face. My friend ask me to put her car keys in my fanny pack. When we got home we got in her car and went to the store. I took the washcloth and wiped my face. I had done it off and on during the walk. This time though my face stared burning like it was on fire. When my friend got back in the car I told her. We then realized the the pepper spray gun she had on her key chain was apparently leaking. We went back to her has and I kept washing my face with cool water until it stopped burning. I can only imagine what that poor man inured with the whole force of he spray and how many times he was sprayed.

    I am appalled at the police system in Tampa. My heart and prayers go out to his family and friends. I hope in the long run justice will prevail for hem even though it won’t bring him back.

  12. Buzz Mega says:

    Time for Operation Clean Sweep.

  13. denacron says:

    Is that Cajun Cuisine I smell cooking, or just another pepper spray victim down at the crematorium.

  14. Somebody says:

    Remember that Bradley Manning protest you blew off?

    This is what you are going to pay for your apathy.

  15. Glenn E. says:

    Another idea recently came to me, about this case. It’s actually one I’ve had before, but keep forgetting. Relating to this abuse of power, both by police and Dick Cheney’s policy of approved torture methods. Maybe Adam Curry will agree with this one.

    What they’re really trying to do is scare the crap out of the rest of us, to stay in line. If they really wanted to do this sort of thing, and then keep it out of the news. Don’t you think they couldn’t pull that off? But some how, it got public exposure. Not only didn’t they clean up and redress their victim. They took a picture of him, to prove what they did. And gave it to the lawyer. “Hey, come and sue us, we’re idiots!” Yeah, that’s how you cover up your abuses of power.

    What I think is going on is various police organizations are given the task of conducting these “exercises” or experiments in interrogation. With the proviso that the results be made public. Thus the public gets the not-so-subtle message, that if you step out of line, you might get this treatment too. So go ahead and “occupy” some city or town, and see. I think this has been going on in some fashion, since the Kent State massacre. Back then it was the war protesters. Now it’s the Wall Street protesters. And some day it’ll be K-Street and Congress protesters. So the government need the tool of fear to keep that from taking off. And the occasional news item about “accidental” lethal tortures, ought to fill the bill.

    Behave slaves. Or you’ll get the hot pepper bath.

  16. Glenn E. says:

    I was a little curious why the My Fox news team of Tampa Florida reported this. As they usually keep news that’s embarrassing to certain politicians they favor, quiet. And I discovered that when this incidence took place, two and a half years ago. Sure nuff, both the Governor of Florida, and the Major of Tampa, were both democrats and Obama supporters. Plus the then mayor was a woman. Neither are in office now. But maybe this is Fox’s way of throwing mud at the party in general. Now that elections are right around the corner. The trial over the matter, starts next year as well. What timing, eh? You can bet the Fox news team to run more embarrassing items that happened when democrats were in office. Why am I not ever surprised by what Fox news does?

  17. TThor says:

    It is always room in the US Gulags….


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