Police had stopped McClain following a suspicious person complaint. After an officer said McClain reached for an officer’s gun — a claim disputed by prosecutors — another officer put him in a neck hold that rendered him temporarily unconscious. Officers also pinned down McClain before paramedic Jeremy Cooper injected him with ketamine. Cichuniec said it was his decision to use the drug.

Prosecutors said the paramedics did not conduct basic medical checks, such as taking McClain’s pulse and monitoring his breathing before administering the ketamine. The dose was too much for someone of his size — 140 pounds, experts testified.

Defense attorneys for the paramedics said they followed their training in giving ketamine after diagnosing McClain with ” excited delirium,” a disputed condition some say is unscientific and has been used to justify excessive force.