Aaron Pope, 34, died last week in police custody at Mercy St. Vincent Medical Center, about 90 minutes after police, responding to a 911 call, found him outside an East Toledo house.

The community knows little more than that, but the Toledo Police Department must provide answers after a thorough investigation of the incidents leading to his death. That’s what Pope’s family wants, and what this community needs.

Police Chief George Kral, who was not at the scene, has said that no police policies or procedures were violated. There’s no reason now to believe otherwise. Still, Chief Kral should know that any death in police custody will likely come under intense scrutiny.

Relations between police agencies and the communities they serve have taken a beating nationwide in recent months. The high-profile deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., Eric Garner in New York, Tamir Rice in Cleveland, and John Crawford III in Beavercreek, Ohio, aggravated tensions that have plagued urban communities for decades. In each of those cases, the victims were, like Pope, African-American males.

No one should presume any wrongdoing, or even misstep, by Toledo police officers. But TPD’s investigative and internal affairs bureaus must do far more than talk to officers who were at the scene. Even Chief Kral’s fairly definitive statements, on the day Pope died, about his officers’ conduct could compromise the credibility of the ongoing investigation.

This is also a good time for the chief to consider having independent, outside agencies conduct some TPD investigations. In an earlier interview with The Blade’s editorial page, Chief Kral said external investigations were unnecessary because TPD had the expertise to handle them.

That is, of course, true. But expertise is not the only issue. The unquestioned integrity of TPD investigators notwithstanding, independent reviews tend to bolster credibility and help assure the public that a probe was unfettered by friendships or loyalties.

Any investigation of a death should also consider more than narrowly defined police procedures and policies. The broader question is whether the death could have been avoided and, if so, how. Even a properly investigated case that reveals no official misconduct could suggest how the department could better handle similar incidents in the future.

Pope, who was recently released from prison, was reportedly agitated when police placed him in custody. He was also having difficulty breathing when police took him to the hospital.

This week, Pope’s mother said police did not call for an ambulance, used excessive force, and treated her son badly because of his prior run-ins with police. She said police put pressure on Pope’s chest, including an officer holding him down with his knees. Those statements are at odds with those of officers, but Chief Kral cannot simply dismiss them.

The chief has said he wants police-community relations in Toledo to become the nation’s best. With police under scrutiny nationwide, he can start by taking the allegations of Pope’s family seriously, thoroughly investigating them, and sharing all findings with the family and community as soon as he gets them.

First Published April 1, 2015, 4:00 a.m.