Controversial Video Footage of an Arrest by the Austin Police Department Goes Viral
An arrest in Austin, Texas, was videotaped by a bystander and downloaded on Facebook in mid-December 2017, and it instantly went viral because of the content. The video shows that one police officer with the Austin Police Department has on a black Santa hat and three other officers are wearing face masks in an incident that occurred on December 12, 2017. The officers accost a man to arrest him outside of a convenience store. Near the entrance, there is an exchange between the suspect and the officer in the Santa cap. All of the officers guide the suspect around to the side of the building, and loud pleas for help can be heard within seconds. The person with the video then goes around the corner, and the suspect, Jason Donald, is on the ground and is allegedly repeatedly punched in the head by one of the officers with a mask. Another masked officer deploys an electrical weapon into Donald, who appears to be handcuffed.
Brian Manley, Austin Police Chief, made a statement about the incident, saying the video footage does not depict everything that happened during the arrest. He claims that the gap in the scene contains vital evidence, in that the suspect allegedly resisted being handcuffed. The suspect allegedly slipped one hand out of the handcuffs and had both hands in front of him.
Other statements made by the Austin Police Department with regard to this incident follow:
- Officers are allowed to strike a suspect in the head, legs, or arms, if the action is objectively reasonable.
- One outcome of this incident is that officers will no longer be allowed to wear face masks unless it is necessary to protect their identity.
Since the video was uploaded on social media, it has been viewed more than 4 million times.
As with every post on this website, we are only providing information in this post and do not make any allegation or assertion that anyone acted inappropriately or engaged in misconduct.
–Guest Contributor
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