Thanks to PitchBlackUniverse for the link!
via Gothamist.com
A social distancing enforcement action in the East Village on Saturday resulted in three arrests, including one bystander whose violent arrest was caught on video.Story here.
Witness Daquan Owens, who took the video below, said the incident started after plainclothes officers approached a man and a woman talking outside a deli around 5:30 p.m. and ordered them to separate. But Owens says the two people were maintaining a six foot distance in accordance with rules intended to slow the spread of COVID-19.
"They were social distancing," Owens said in a telephone interview on Sunday. "The girl was standing by the phone booth, the guy was sitting on a milk crate. When the cops pulled up she said he’s not doing anything. They grabbed her and started tussling with her. Then the guy on the milk crate got mad and started yelling at police."
In a statement, NYPD spokesperson Sergeant Mary Frances O’Donnell said "a group was observed" on the corner "in violation of social distancing orders." The statement said that when officers approached the group to order them to disperse, "they observed a bag of alleged marijuana in plain view." Another video shows security camera footage of the incident starting before police arrived.
Police say Shakiem Brunson, 31, "became aggressive towards officers and resisted arrest." Ashley Serrano, 22, allegedly tried to intervene to stop police from taking Brunson into custody and was also arrested.
Owens's video begins as several plainclothes officers attempt to handcuff two people outside the deli at the northeast corner of Avenue D and East 9th Street. At roughly the 35 second mark of the video, one of the officers turns and advances on bystander Donni Wright, 33, pointing a taser at him. Owens says the officer called Wright the n-word, which can be heard at the 37 second mark, and Wright can be heard asking the officer if he used the racial epithet.
"Move the fuck back right now," the officer shouts. "Don’t flex."
O’Donnell's statement says Wright "took a fighting stance against the officer." The video shows him from behind with his hands at his side and one fist clenched.
Not tossing stones on this one but the truth (from my chair) is that while this looks bad, the reason for contact terrible at the end of the day the cops are right!
How do I explain it? Let's do the tick tock from A to Z as presented in the article.
1. The reason for contact. I hate the idea that enforcing social distancing is being used for this arrest but you use the tools at hand. The fact that we're seeing plain clothes cops indicates to me that we're seeing street level narcotics at work. In my neck of the woods we have uniformed LEO's doing the job (they call them the "jump out" boys cause they're quick to leave their cruisers to chase down corner drug dealers), street level (which these guys appear to be...plain clothes) and finally the interagency bubbas that go after the big busts. Only a bit deep into the article do they mention the baggie of drugs in plain site. I would almost bet my left testicle this was all about drugs and not social distancing.
2. The arrests of the bystander. From my chair you have to do one of two things. Either control the bystanders OR you leave the scene. This dude was running his mouth and then took up a fighting stance? He's lucky he didn't ride the lightning.
3. The N word being used. Hate to say it but the truth must be said. The N word is off limits to white people. Unfortunately its used quite often in the black community and if you noticed the arresting officer was black. Was it something I condone in saying? Nope. Is rough language used against rough people? You bet your ass. Even with this video I bet you will not see any punishment because anyone with commonsense knows that you can't be gentle with people intent on being rough.
That's how I see it.
Tell me where I'm wrong.
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