Two nightclub bouncers accused of choking a black Des Moines man to death in February were found “not guilty” of involuntary manslaughter this afternoon. Tom Dueber and Jeff Portman were bouncers at the Graffiti’s nightclub in Des Moines last February when they got involved in a fracas with Charles Lovelady. Prosecutors charged the two men caused Lovelady’s death that night by using a chokehold. Iowa’s former medical examiner took the stand as a defense witness and said Lovelady died of a heart attack caused by the exertion of the scuffle and alcohol consumption. After the jury’s not-guilty verdict was read, Lovelady’s family members broke out in tears and some ran from the courthouse. The family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the owners of the now-closed nightclub. L-A lawyer Johnny Cochran who gained nationwide fame in O-J Simpson’s trial has signed on to try that case.
