The Huntsville Police Department released a statement regarding the video involving two officers and a suspect that went viral over the weekend.
They say:
“On May 20, 2018, Huntsville Police became aware of a video on social media which documented approximately forty four (44) seconds of an over four (4) minute struggle to handcuff an individual being arrested for Public Intoxication at the scene of an accident.
Multiple citizens had flagged down a police officer in the area to report the accident and the intoxicated male walking around the accident. After speaking to witnesses and the offender, two (2) Huntsville Police Officers attempted to arrest the male and place him in handcuffs. The offender began actively resisting officers and attempted to flee, ignoring the officer’s directions.
During the officers’ struggle with the offender he was taken to the ground where officers told him over thirty one (31) times he was under arrest and to put his hands behind his back. The offender continued to actively resist, and as the social media video shows, an officer did strike the offender in large muscle areas, as trained, in an attempt to get the offender to release the officer’s hand.
The entire incident was captured on both in-car cameras and by officers’ body camera, although both officers’ body cameras were ripped from their uniforms during the struggle.
Neither the officers involved nor the offender sustained any injuries.
The offender in this incident has been interviewed and is cooperating; however he has asked that his name not be released.
The bystanders who filmed the incident were asked to move out of the roadway and film from public sidewalks in an effort to prevent another accident and to allow traffic to flow.
Because this is an active criminal case we cannot release our videos, however there are several more minutes of video filmed by the citizens that was not posted, and we support the release of this video.
The Internal Affairs Division of the Huntsville Police Department reviewed the incident and found the officers acted within policy.”
Source: Huntsville Police Department
