At 7:30 p.m. Nov. 7, the polls were closing and the Bush-Gore presidential election quagmire was just beginning.

        Roger Owensby Jr. pulled his car into a Sunoco gas station in Roselawn.

Jorg

Caton

        For nearly a year, details of what happened next have been sketchy. But Mr. Owensby ended up dead that night, the 12th African-American man killed by Cincinnati police since 1995. Many of those men had weapons; Mr. Owensby was unarmed.

        This week, two officers go on trial in connection with his suffocation death. It was a case that enraged some African-American community leaders and raised awareness of police use-of-force issues — coming to a head in April when another unarmed black man was killed by a Cincinnati officer.

        In fact, Officer Robert “Blaine” Jorg, who goes on trial Monday, faces far more serious charges — felony involuntary manslaughter and misdemeanor assault — than Officer Stephen Roach did mere weeks ago. Officer Roach was acquitted in a six-day bench trial in the April 7 death of Timothy Thomas.

        Officer Patrick Caton, whose separate trial begins Wednesday, faces a misdemeanor assault charge in the Owensby case.

        Their proceedings were postponed after riots broke out following Mr. Thomas' death.

        Officer Jorg, 30, a five-year veteran and onetime Ohio State Patrol auxiliary trooper, is accused of putting a choke hold on Mr. Owensby, leading to his death. If convicted, Officer Jorg could be sentenced to a maximum five years in prison and would lose his job. He has been on administrative leave without pay since his January indictment.

        Officer Caton, 35, a four-year veteran, is accused of hitting Mr. Owensby while helping subdue him. If convicted, he could receive up to six months in jail and up to a $1,000 fine.

        Because of the charge against him, Officer Caton lost his police powers and has been working in the city's impound lot.

        Mr. Owensby was a 29-year-old father of one from College Hill.

        Many details about the minutes from when Cincinnati officers, conducting a drug investigation, approached him in the gas station parking lot to when he lapsed into unconsciousness in the back of a police cruiser have been unknown. Presidential returns were just beginning to come in when he was pronounced dead at University Hospital.

        Surveillance video from a nearby store shows officers talking with Mr. Owensby before he ran from them, officials said.

        Hamilton County Coroner Carl L. Parrott said Mr. Owensby could have succumbed to “a choke hold that went bad” or from several people piling on top of him to subdue him.

        During the chase and struggle with Mr. Owensby, 13 officers converged on the gas station at Langdon Farm Road and Seymour Avenue.

        Mr. Owensby was caught and sprayed with chemical irritant. When that didn't subdue him, officials said, Officers Jorg and Caton, along with Officers Alexander Hasse, Darren Sellers and David Hunter Jr. struggled to handcuff Mr. Owensby.

        Drugs were found at the scene, but police have not said whether authorities have determined they belonged to Mr. Owensby.

        Witnesses testified to grand jurors that Officer Jorg put Mr. Owensby in a choke hold while subduing him. They also testified that Officer Caton struck Mr. Owensby during the arrest.

        Neither officer has spoken with prosecutors about their actions Nov. 7.

        Officer Jorg's attorney, R. Scott Croswell, has said his client did not talk to authorities because he was identified early on as a suspect in Mr. Owensby's death. He said Officer Jorg did not do anything improper and there is no physical proof that he did.

        Merlyn Shiverdecker, Officer Caton's attorney, declined to discuss his client's defense.

        Mr. Owensby's criminal record included one misdemeanor drug conviction and three traffic offenses.

        These trials could hinge not only on the evidence, but also on jury opinions of police officers — especially since the riots and Officer Roach's acquittal.

        Mr. Owensby's death drew its own backlash. Protesters showed up in Cincinnati City Council chambers, and the city subsequently was sued for racial profiling.

        Aware of the fallout, defense attorneys are concerned about finding jurors who don't know much about the incident and haven't formed opinions about police officers. They've asked for a change of venue. But their requests have been denied, pending jury selection.

        Prosecution witness lists include members of Mr. Owensby's family. However, their attorney, John Helbling, said he is uncertain if they will testify.

        Defense witnesses include police training experts, District 4 supervisors, Officer Jorg's middle school football coach, his wife, Kristin, and an auxiliary sergeant in the Ohio State Patrol.

        Fraternal Order of Police President Keith Fangman said officers Jorg and Caton have received tremendous support from their fellow officers and from community residents.

        Fund-raisers have helped build a combined defense fund estimated at $75,000 to pay for their legal bills.

        “It is our understanding that their defense attorneys are going to provide evidence proving that these officers did not kill Roger Owensby by choking him as was previously rumored,” Mr. Fangman said. “We continue to support our brother officers due to the fact that like any citizen they are presumed innocent.”

        Mr. Owensby's parents, Roger Sr. and Brenda, declined to comment before the trial.

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