The officers pulled his hair after he told them he couldn’t get out on his own
The Dayton Police in Ohio have announced the opening of an investigation against several officers who pulled a black paraplegic from his car by pulling his hair after he told them he could not get out on his own.
Agents stopped Clifford Owensby on September 30 with the intention of searching his vehicle for illegal drugs, reports US public radio NPR. For this, it was necessary for Owensby to get out of the car and they asked him to do so, according to the recording of the body camera of the agents.
“I cant go out. I am a paraplegic, “Owensby replied, to which a police officer replied that an officer could help him, but the individual replied that he was afraid of being hurt. Owensby then asks for a “white shirt”, that is, the presence of a police supervisor, but the officers reply that they will ask for it when he gets out of the car.
One of the police officers becomes nervous at Owensby’s refusal to get out of the car and threatens to drag him out. You can cooperate and get out of the car or I’m the one pulling you out. Do you see the two options you have? ”He says.
Finally several agents grab Owensby by pulling his arms and hair while he yells for help. They restrain him, handcuff his hands behind his back and take him away from the vehicle.
In the car there was a bag with $ 22,450 and a three-year-old in the back seat. Owensby was fined for not wearing the boy with the regulation seat belt and for wearing tinted windows. He has also been cited for obstruction of law enforcement officials and for resisting arrest.
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley called the incident “very disturbing” in statements to NPR. “That’s why the city immediately released the body camera footage. All those involved are being investigated, “he explained.
However, the president of the Order of the Fraternal Lodge of the Dayton Police, Jerome Dix, has defended the action of the police. “They complied with the law, with their training and with the procedures and policies of the department. Sometimes the arrests of individuals who do not cooperate are not pretty, but they are necessary to maintain public safety, “he argued.
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