Cleveland Mayor Billy Nowell has issued an official statement in response to demands made at Tuesday’s Cleveland Board of Aldermen meeting that he speak on the events surrounding the death of Jermaine Williams.

Nowell’s statement follows in its entirety:

“I make the following remarks on behalf of the Office of the Mayor, the Board of Aldermen and the City of Cleveland.

“As you are aware, on July 23, 2010, at approximately 3:18 a.m., Cleveland officers responded to a call which resulted in the arrest of Jermaine Williams. Following, this arrest, Mr. Williams passed away.

“Immediately, Chief of Police Buster Bingham called in the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation to conduct an investigation into this incident. Also, as is protocol, because the MBI investigation is ongoing, the officers involved in the arrest were placed on administrative leave. The City and Police Department are awaiting the results of the MBI investigation. This information may not be available for some time.

“At this time, I can make no comment beyond the remarks made in this letter because (1) this matter involves an ongoing investigation by the MBI and (2) the City has been served with a Notice of Claim that a lawsuit will be filed against the City by Mr. Williams’ family and the City has also been served with a Complaint for Discovery by the Williams family.”