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Dennorriss Richardson

Age : 39

Gender : Male

Race : Black

Date : 09/28/2024

Location : Abandoned residence off U.S. Highway 72

City : Sheffield

County : Colbert

State : Alabama

Agency : Sheffield Police Department; Colbert County Sheriff’s Office

Officer(s) :Brett Evans; Max Dotson; Darien Fountain; Billy Hall; Sinaca Butcher

Cause of Death : Asphyxiation

Event : Died by hanging under disputed circumstances

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 09/28/2024, Dennoriss Richardson, 39, was found dead, hanging by a rope from the carport of an abandoned residence off U.S. Highway 72 in rural Colbert County, several miles from his home in Sheffield. The Colbert County Sheriff’s Office investigated the death and classified it as a suicide.
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Richardson's death attracted substantial scrutiny because seven months earlier he had filed a federal civil-rights lawsuit against the City of Sheffield and Sheffield police officers Brett Evans, Max Dotson, Darien Fountain, Billy Hall and Sinaca Butcher. The lawsuit, filed on 02/26/2024 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, alleged unconstitutional arrests, excessive force and abuse while Richardson was in Sheffield police custody.
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The lawsuit arose from Richardson's detention on 11/30/2022 and 12/01/2022. Richardson alleged that Sheffield officers assaulted him at Sheffield Municipal Court and later abused him while he was confined in the Sheffield City Jail. His complaint alleged that police restrained him in a chair for more than three hours, sprayed him with chemical agents, used a Taser against him, struck him in the throat and denied him appropriate medical attention.
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Richardson's wife, Leigh Richardson, publicly rejected the determination that her husband killed himself. She said he had no connection to the abandoned property where his body was discovered and had not left a suicide note. She feared his death could be connected to his litigation against Sheffield police and called for an independent investigation.
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The circumstances also generated broader concern because Richardson was one of several Black and Latino men represented by civil-rights attorney Roderick Van Daniel who had filed lawsuits alleging misconduct by Sheffield police. Richardson had also reportedly complained to Sheffield Mayor Steve Stanley that police were profiling him. His wife said that after the federal lawsuit was filed, Richardson was repeatedly stopped by police and had become fearful of encounters with law enforcement.
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Colbert County Sheriff Eric Balentine requested that the FBI independently investigate Richardson's death. Balentine said his department remained confident in its suicide determination but sought federal review because of the family's concerns, Richardson's lawsuit against Sheffield police and the potential perception of a conflict involving local law enforcement.
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The Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences conducted the state autopsy. Its final report classified Richardson's death as suicide.
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Richardson's family obtained a separate private autopsy, which did not reach the same definitive conclusion. The private pathologist said the physical examination alone could not establish suicide and that additional investigation was necessary to exclude the possibility that the scene had been staged. The pathologist also reported that photographs of the death scene and the rope had not been provided for the private examination. The differing conclusions intensified the family's demands for further investigation.
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The case remained under scrutiny well beyond the initial investigation. On 03/04/2026, a Colbert County judge ordered Google to produce images and video associated with the street where Richardson's body was found. Google was ordered to comply by 03/19/2026. The order demonstrates that investigative or judicial efforts concerning the circumstances of Richardson's death were continuing approximately 18 months after his death.
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Richardson was born on 07/29/1985. His family described him as a father, husband, mentor and longtime youth baseball and football coach. He was survived by his wife, Leigh Richardson, two daughters, three sons, his mother, siblings and extended family. His obituary described him as a strong presence in his community who spent years mentoring and coaching young people.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND
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Brett Evans, Max Dotson, Darien Fountain, Billy Hall and Sinaca Butcher were the Sheffield police personnel named as defendants in Richardson's federal civil-rights lawsuit. Richardson alleged that the officers participated in unconstitutional arrests, excessive force or mistreatment associated with his November 2022 detention and confinement in the Sheffield City Jail.
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Richardson's allegations against these officers were pending civil claims when he died and should not be treated as adjudicated findings of misconduct. Their significance to this case is that Richardson had formally accused these specifically identified Sheffield officers of violating his civil rights months before he was found hanging at an abandoned property and his family began questioning the suicide determination.
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SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.waff.com/2024/10/17/fbi-investigating-after-man-found-dead-abandoned-home/
https://apnews.com/article/2e2222fe1ce9d5e37b67837734fb4339
https://apnews.com/article/d32f93ad4b76a9006b7558284b1655aa
https://www.waff.com/2025/01/03/final-state-autopsy-report-released-colbert-county-mans-death/
https://www.waff.com/2026/03/12/judge-orders-google-release-images-videos-2024-colbert-county-death-case/
https://atlantablackstar.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Denissonn-Richardson-lawsuit.pdf
https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/name/dennoriss-richardson-obituary?id=56422724
https://www.tributearchive.com/obituaries/33240230/dennoriss-richardson