“I am a paraplegic”: the video of an American police officer pulling an invalid black man out of a car
Photo: DAYTON POLICE DEPARTMENT / copyright
Another case of police violence against a black man makes headlines in the US.
The authorities in that country are investigating a video that shows a man being pulled by the hair of his car by law enforcement officers while repeatedly shouting “I am a paraplegic“.
Body camera footage from one of the officers shows the officer detaining Clifford Owensby in Dayton, Ohio, last month and asking him to get out of his car so they can search for drugs.
Owensby, 39, refuses, saying he can’t use his legs.
Officers insist he must get out and then pull him out of the vehicle by his hair and arms while the man calls for help.
The Dayton Police Department says it is now investigating the incident that took place on September 30.
The police version
The agents alleged that they were detaining the man because he was moving away from a house where drugs were trafficked.
Police say they found a bag of cash containing $ 22,450 in the man’s car.
Owensby has not been charged with any crime related to drug trafficking.
During the incident, the man repeatedly declined requests to get out of the car, although officers said they would help him.
In the video, Owensby is seen asking an agent to call a superior.
“Here’s the thing, I’m going to get you out and then I’ll call the supervisor,” an officer responds.
As his frustration grows, the police officer says, “You can cooperate and get out of the car or I will drag you out of the car. You choose”.
Condemnation and justification
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley described the images as “very disturbing.”
Civil rights groups say they are also investigating the incident.
“Getting this man out of the car, by the hair, a paraplegic, is totally unacceptable, inhuman, and puts a bad light on our great city of Dayton, Ohio,” Derrick Foward of the National Association for Advancement told the Washington Post. of Colored People.
Some have defended the actions of the agents.
Jerome Dix, president of a local police fraternity, said they had “followed the law, its training and departmental policies.”
“Sometimes arresting people who do not follow orders is not pleasant, but it is a necessary part of law enforcement to maintain public safety,” Dix told the Dayton Daily News.
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