A woman was arrested by an Atlanta police officer after refusing to sign a ticket for being in a park after hours. A portion of the video has gone viral and fingers are being pointed at the police with accusations of brutality. The full 38-minute video, however, tells a much different story. Atlanta Police Department released the full body camera video along with a statement expressing their full support for the officer’s actions that day. He was professional and respectful while the woman being arrested was simply resisting for no real reason. She may have been under the influence of some sort of substance. Allegations of racism won’t play a factor here because everyone involved is black.
The drama begins when the officer approaches the couple in question. He started off with empathy when he recognized their Ohio vehicle tags, suggesting that maybe they don’t know local laws. This acknowledgment was not a get-out-of-jail-free card, though. Being in a public park after dark is still an offense that warrants a ticket, similar to a parking violation. The officer got both of their IDs and began to write up tickets. The woman’s companion, a male, was given his ticket first. The officer explained that if the man did not sign the ticket then he would go to jail. The man sort of reluctantly signs the ticket and then gets his ID back. Their interaction was essentially over at this point.
After the man gets his ticket and stands to the side, the officer calls over the woman who was standing in the background while leaning up against her companion’s car. She initially appears to not hear the officer or maybe she simply refused to obey his command. Officer Brooks asks her to come over again and she complies. This is when things go downhill. He explained the ticket to her just the same way he explained it to her friend. She then tried to ask questions about being in the park after dark and then she requested his name and badge number. After a bunch of back and forth and repetitive questions about his name and badge number, all while refusing to sign the ticket, the officer has enough and begins to arrest her.
The viral video kicks in at this point, showing the officer tackling her to the ground in order to cuff her because she was resisting. The context before the arrest is very important. But, of course, full context is the enemy of going viral so that part was left out.
SOURCES:
Video of woman’s arrest by Atlanta police sparks uproar on social media
Viral video shows ‘physical altercation’ between Atlanta police officer, woman – WSB-TV Channel 2 – Atlanta
Atlanta police bodycam video of woman’s park citation | 11alive.com
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