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Tag: Police brutality

  • Kenosha Police Pepper-Sprayed Black Father and Baby Inside An Applebee’s In Mistaken Arrest

    Kenosha Police Pepper-Sprayed Black Father and Baby Inside An Applebee’s In Mistaken Arrest

    Police in Kenosha, Wisconsin are under fire after reportedly pepper-spraying a young Black father and his baby at an Applebee’s restaurant, per Insider.

    The incident occurred while officers were searching for a hit-and-run suspect, but mistakenly targeted Jermelle English Jr. and his partner Shayna Boyd instead. Video footage shows a bystander pleading for someone to protect the baby as police restrain English. 

    Charges of disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, obstructing an officer, and possession of marijuana were filed against English and Boyd. The family’s attorney, Kevin O’Connor, has called for an investigation by the Justice Department and for the charges to be dropped. With the experienced trauma that the family has faced they now feel that

    “being Black and being out here and having dinner is not safe enough for them,”

    O’Connor revealed at a press conference. 

    “This was no accident,”

    O’Connor said in the press conference.

    “What is the first thing that officers are taught? To de-escalate a situation.”

    Tanya McLean, executive director of local social justice nonprofit Leaders of Kenosha, criticized the police for not releasing all body camera footage of the incident. The incident, which took place on July 20, coincided with the third anniversary of the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man shot seven times during a traffic stop in Kenosha in 2020. The Kenosha Police Department has not responded to Insider’s requests for comment.

    #Clique, what are your thoughts?

  • Officers Ruled Justified For Punching Jaywalking Suspect In The Head

    Officers Ruled Justified For Punching Jaywalking Suspect In The Head

    On April 22nd, police officers in Ogden, Utah repeatedly punched a man in the head while he was on the ground when they attempted to arrest him for jaywalking. After Ogden Police Chief Eric Young declared the incident “well within department policy and completely justified,” the man’s family has decided to file a lawsuit, Action News 5 reported.

    Young says his officers began investigating Shawn Sims after they noticed him walking in between traffic. “Mr. Sims appeared to observe the officers and immediately reached into his waistband, leading officers to believe that he was accessing a gun,” Young explained, claiming that Sims withdrew his hand from his waist and pushed it under his shirt in the shape of a handgun. He says that officers then believed that he was pointing a weapon at them.

    Sims refused to comply and attempted to flee the scene, prompting police to “take him to the ground and command him to release his hands from his waistband,” Young stated. After the officers failed to gain compliance, two of the four officers started striking the suspect in the head. Another of the officers used his taser on Sims twice.

    “I watched the video and I read the interaction from the After-Action Investigation and I do believe those officers were in fear for their life,” said Young. “They were trying to bring the situation as quickly under control as possible.”

  • Alabama Man Was Denied Water For Over 70 Hours Before Dying In Police Custody From Hypothermia

    Alabama Man Was Denied Water For Over 70 Hours Before Dying In Police Custody From Hypothermia


    At the end of January, Alabama man Anthony “Tony” Mitchell died from hypothermia while also being denied water for 70 hours while in police custody. Now, his family is suing. According to CBS 42, a lawsuit alleges that Mitchell was denied access to medical and mental health treatment, hit with a stun gun, and repeatedly dragged by corrections officers when he could not walk.

    Tony Mitchell was taken to Walker County Jail and spent nearly 14 days there before his death on January 26th. Kept in a cell referred to as “the freezer,” due to its cold temperatures, Mitchell was denied a bunk, a sink, or any source of water. The cell only had a small hole in the floor covered with grating that could be used as a toilet.

    In those two weeks, the lawsuit claims that Mitchell had been provided a mat, a blanket, and later had a suicide watch garment, but those were all taken from him within the first few days. He spent the majority of the time naked, and sitting on a bare, concrete floor. He was given three meals a day, usually without water, and was allowed to shower less than half of the days he was in police custody.

    On the day of his death, a correctional officer offered him water for the first time within 70 hours, but Mitchell had been too weak from dehydration and hypothermia to sit up and drink it. Medical staff advised authorities to take him to a hospital at around 4:17 A.M., but video footage showed that Mitchell wasn’t transported from the facility until over four and a half hours later. At 1:15 P.M., he was pronounced dead.

    “I am not sure what circumstances the patient was held in incarceration, but it is difficult to understand a rectal temperature of 72° F 22° centigrade while someone is incarcerated in jail,” the emergency room’s doctor’s notes state. “The cause of his hypothermia is not clear. . . I do believe that hypothermia was the ultimate cause of his death.”

    In a statement released by the Walker County Sheriff’s Office, officials say that Mitchell was alert and conscious as he was rushed to receive medical care. A released surveillance video contradicts those claims, showing that the inmate had to be carried out by multiple staff members. Knowing they were already caught in a massive lie, the lawyer representing the sheriff’s office have yet to respond to the amended complaint.

  • Fired Memphis EMT Said Police Were ‘Impeding Patient Care’ of Tyre Nichols’ By Refusing To Remove Handcuffs

    Fired Memphis EMT Said Police Were ‘Impeding Patient Care’ of Tyre Nichols’ By Refusing To Remove Handcuffs

    An EMT who was fired in connection to Tyre Nichols’s murder has spoken out against the Memphis police claiming they were preventing them from performing patient care, NBC News reports. 

    Former Memphis Fire Department EMT Robert Long, who was at the scene the night Tyre Nichols’ was inhumanely beaten by Memphis officers, said officers were

    “impeding patient care”

    while Nichols’ was in their custody. Long attempted to clear his name during a hearing with the Tennessee Emergency Medical Services Board on Friday.

    Long detailed the moment he and another EMT, JaMichael Sandridge, arrived at the scene. Long alleged that when he arrived he was immediately notified that an officer had been pepper sprayed but did not require any medical attention. The two EMTs were later directed to Nichols’, who was allegedly

    “handcuffed and propped up against a police car,”

    reports state. 

    Long said he documented Nichols’ injuries, which included bumps on the head, a busted lip, and a bloody nose. Long said when he asked Nichols’ what had happened, Nichols’ allegedly replied:

    “I want to stand up and be uncuffed.”

    Long said,

    “I asked MPD what happened with the patient and the officer stated ‘he ran from us.’”

    He added that

    “… MPD [was] leaning over the patient in his face saying loudly that the patient is not going anywhere and that they are not going to uncuff him, impeding patient care.”

    Long claims he made several attempts to take Nichols’ vitals but had difficulties due to 

    “Nichols’ rolling away from him,”

    reports reveal. Long said he eventually called an ambulance that transported Nichols’ to a hospital. Nichols’ died three days later from his injuries. 

    The Memphis Fire Department fired Long, Sandridge, and another EMT, Lt. Michelle Whitaker, in late January for

    “violating multiple policies and protocols during their response,”

    reports state. 

    #Clique, what are your thoughts?

  • 5 Memphis Police Officers Fired In The Death Of Tyre Nichols, Department Announced

    5 Memphis Police Officers Fired In The Death Of Tyre Nichols, Department Announced

    Five Memphis Police Department officers who were involved in the arrest of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old father, who died in the hospital days after the traffic stop, have been fired, Newsweek reported. 

    Memphis Police Department announced on Friday that Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills, Jr., and Justin Smith had their employment terminated after violating

    “multiple department policies”

    during their encounter with Nichols.

    “After a thorough review of the circumstances surrounding this incident, we have determined that five MPD officers violated multiple department policies, including excessive use of force, duty to intervene, and duty to render aid. Earlier today, each officer charged was terminated from the Memphis Police Department,”

    the statement said.

    An earlier statement from the department published on January 8, said officers attempted to arrest Nichols for

    “reckless driving”

    on January 7.

    “As officers approached the driver of the vehicle, a confrontation occurred, and the suspect fled the scene on foot. Officers pursued the suspect and again attempted to take the suspect into custody. While attempting to take the suspect into custody, another confrontation occurred; however, the suspect was ultimately apprehended,”

    the statement said. It continued:

    “Afterwards, the suspect complained of having a shortness of breath, at which time an ambulance was called to the scene. The suspect was transported to St. Francis Hospital in critical condition.”

    He succumbed to his injuries three days after the arrest. 

    The bureau has launched an investigation into the five officers to detect if they committed any criminal offenses, as well as a separate civil rights investigation that has been launched by the Department of Justice and FBI. The family of Nichols is currently being represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump.

    #Clique, what are your thoughts?