A North Carolina police officer is seen on social media repeatedly striking a black woman during an arrest while she is being held down by several other officers. The department claims that the officer hit the woman “intentionally” to get her to comply, but the police chief admitted on Wednesday that he understands “the outrage.”
Chief Johnny Jennings stated during a news conference on Wednesday that a battle broke out when Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officers confronted a man and woman who were using marijuana at a bus stop on Monday and started to arrest the man. The lady intervened, an officer attempted to stop her, and a struggle followed.
Lt. Kevin Pietrus stated that the woman struck an officer more than once. Pietrus stated that an officer who arrived as backup punched the lady multiple times during the fight to coax her into allowing police to take her into custody.
“After several repeated verbal commands, an officer struck the female subject seven times with knee strikes and 10 closed fist strikes to the peroneal nerve in the thigh to try to gain compliance,” police said in a statement on Tuesday. “The officer was intentional about where the strikes were made.”
A fifth officer is shown repeatedly striking the woman with a clinched fist while four other officers kneel and hold her down in a spectator video that has been uploaded online. Bystanders shout at the officers to halt while it’s happening. A short while later, the woman is led, her arms behind her back, to a squad SUV by the cops, who have now stood up.
Police are attempting to calm people down, but Jennings told reporters, “I get it. I understand the outrage. I understand the emotions that come when you look at a video that involves an officer who is punching a female.”
Jennings claimed that in his thirty-two years of law enforcement, he had experienced such physical altercations.
“I can tell you that I’ve never been involved in using force that has looked pretty and has looked good to the public,” he stated. “So these are difficult situations. And all I ask is we continue to let this investigation internally play out.”
According to Jennings, the department’s internal affairs office is looking into the matter. He also hinted that other authorities would eventually look into this matter independently. According to Jennings, the officer, named Vincent Pistone, has been temporarily transferred from the patrol division to the investigations unit. A spokesman for the agency stated that details on the racial backgrounds of its police are kept confidential.
The lady, named in court filings as a 24-year-old black woman from Charlotte, is accused of assaulting an officer. The video that shows the officer punching the lady, as well as two other films filmed from a different position by someone else, do not show the start of the incident between police and the persons they detained.
Jennings stated on Wednesday that the officer’s body camera, which he claims was smacked by the lady, was knocked off during the battle.
The chief stated that the public has the right to see the bodycam film and that he expects it will be released, but that it may take many months since North Carolina law requires a court order to reveal such material.
He stated that his agency had previously petitioned the court for the release.
When authorities arrested the man, they discovered a loaded weapon in his luggage, according to police. The male was charged with concealing a firearm, and the lady with assaulting a government officer. Both were also charged with resisting the police and possessing marijuana.
The guy and woman work at a Bojangles restaurant near the scene of the arrest, according to the food company. According to press reports, they had already finished their shifts and were leaving the site when they were contacted by authorities.
“Like many other Charlotteans, we were shocked and saddened by the video of an incident between Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police and a Bojangles employee,” stated Stacey McCray, Vice President of Communications. “While we wait to learn more of the details of what led to the incident, we plan to cooperate fully with any investigation.”
During the press conference, Jennings admitted that the “optics are bad.”
“It shouldn’t have happened,” he said. “But whose responsibility is the question, right?”
The chief questioned whether the cops should have begun marijuana charges “even though we can,” as well as whether the lady should have interfered with the man’s arrest and hit officers.
“None of that should have happened,” he told me.
On July 1, 2020, Johnny Jennings was sworn in as Chief of Police for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. He has served the City of Charlotte for over 30 years and has a proven track record of being a forward-thinking, innovative leader within the organization. He is a trusted member of the force with sufficient knowledge to deal with the controversy.
