A video showing Florida deputies punching and dragging a Black man from his car during a traffic stop has sparked nationwide outrage, with civil rights lawyers accusing authorities of fabricating their arrest report.
William McNeil Jr., 22, was sitting in the driver's seat, asking to speak to the Jacksonville deputies' supervisor, when authorities broke his window, punched him in the face, pulled him from the vehicle, punched him again and threw him to the ground.
But Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters says there's more to the story than the cellphone video that went viral on the Internet. He warned the public about 鈥渁 rush to judgment鈥 that could lead to faulty conclusions. McNeil's lawyers say the video clearly depicts police brutality.
The footage from the Feb. 19 arrest shows that seconds before being dragged outside, McNeil had his hands up and did not appear to be resisting as he asked, 鈥淲hat is your reason?鈥 He had pulled over and accused of not having his headlights on, even though it was daytime, his lawyers said.
鈥淲hat happened to William McNeil Jr. is a disturbing reminder that even the most basic rights 鈥 like asking why you鈥檝e been pulled over 鈥 can be met with violence for Black Americans,鈥 lawyers Ben Crump and Harry Daniels said in a statement. Crump is a Black civil rights attorney who has gained national prominence representing victims of police brutality and vigilante violence.
鈥淲illiam was calm and compliant,鈥 they said. 鈥淵et instead of answers, he got his window smashed and was punched in the face, all over a questionable claim about headlights in broad daylight.鈥
The sheriff said the cellphone camera footage from inside the car 鈥渄oes not comprehensively capture the circumstances surrounding the incident.鈥
鈥淧art of that stems from the distance and perspective of the recording cell phone camera,鈥 the sheriff said in a statement, adding that the video did not capture events that occurred before officers decided to arrest McNeil.
Cameras 鈥渃an only capture what can be seen and heard,鈥 the sheriff added. 鈥淪o much context and depth are absent from recorded footage because a camera simply cannot capture what is known to the people depicted in it.鈥
A key point of contention in the police report is a claim that McNeil was reaching toward an area where a knife was. Deputies later found the knife on the driver's side floorboard of his car when they searched it after taking McNeil into custody.
鈥淭he suspect was reaching for the floorboard of the vehicle where a large knife was sitting,鈥 Officer D. Bowers wrote in his report. 鈥淭he suspect continued to attempt to pull away from officers and refused to place his hands behind his back.鈥
Bowers does not mention any punches being thrown in his report, and describes the force this way: 鈥淧hysical force was applied to the suspect and he was taken to the ground.鈥
Crump and Daniels called that report a "fabrication,鈥 saying that 鈥渉e never reaches for anything.鈥
鈥淭he only time he moves at all is when the officer knocks him over by punching him in his face," they said. "Then this young man calmly sits back straight and holds his empty hands up.鈥
鈥淗e鈥檚 never combative, never raises his voice and he certainly never reaches for a knife,鈥 they added. 鈥淗e simply asks for a supervisor and then they break his window and beat him yet, somehow, the report failed to mention that.鈥
McNeil was charged with resisting a police officer without violence; driving with a suspended license and having less than 20 grams of marijuana, Waters said. He pleaded guilty to the charges of resisting an officer and driving with a suspended license, Waters said.
McNeil was warned seven times that he needed to open his car door and get out, or officers would be forced to break his car window, the sheriff said.
Waters said the sheriff鈥檚 office on Sunday became aware that the cellphone video was circulating on social media. Investigations then began, and the State Attorney鈥檚 Office determined that no officers violated any criminal laws, he said at a news briefing. An 鈥渁dministrative review鈥 to determine whether officers violated any department policies is still ongoing, he said.
