He looks to be kneeling in this video, so I don't think his spine was severed at this point. I wonder if they just threw him in the back of the van and he rolled around and it happened (someone who had been placed in the back of one of those vans posted on one of the news FB pages and she said something like she rolled around in the back) Anybody here know if people who are arrested are seat belted/secured in vehicles?
I'm assuming he was completely incapacitated when he got to the ER. I'm sure those reports will be enlightening.
His vertebrae could have been cracked already, so additional movement could have led to the spine being severed.