Release Of Neville Records Put On Hold

A move to release records in the John Neville case has been put on hold.

A Forsyth County judge had agreed to release the records pertaining to the death of Neville, who died after being restrained by officers in the county jail. But he also issued a stay delaying the release.

Now the Winston-Salem Journal reports that the stay is being extended as the court considers an appeal by prosecutors. The Journal is among the media outlets in a coalition that sued to get the documents, which could shed light on what led prosecutors to charge six detention center workers with involuntary manslaughter.

The coalition's lawsuit is the latest move to bring transparency to a case that began with secrecy. The Forsyth County Sheriff's Office waited months to publicly disclose that Neville had died. He was 56.

Video of the incident showed him telling officers he couldn't breathe after they restrained him following a medical emergency.

Protests erupted in Winston-Salem last summer after that news became public.