Kenneth Jackson said he recorded the video of the 8-year-old boy being put in a Syracuse police car for allegedly stealing chips because there was no one else intervening.
I had to because at that moment I’m looking around, and there’s no one out there, besides myself at the time, more audience was starting to gather, but no one was actually intervening.
We have a policing problem when it comes to policing the community, and clearly, as the world can see, there is a big, big, big disconnect.
Kenneth is heard screaming in the video at the officers trying to get some clarity on why they are handling the 8-year-old boy so roughly for stealing chips.
At one point in the video, Kenneth offers to pay for the chips and walk the boy home himself, clearly showing concern for the boy’s safety in the hands of the officers.
Instead of the officers deescalating the situation by explaining to Kenneth what they are doing, they match his energy and scream smart remarks back at him.
Reportedly, the officers did not handcuff the boy, and they took him and his bike to his parents.
The boy’s dad said that the officers were friendly when they dropped him off.
Kenneth’s video went viral and sparked a debate on what the appropriate course of action should have been.
The Mayor of Syracuse released the following statement concerning the incident:
…the body camera footage demonstrates no handcuffs were used by officers at any time.
What occurred demonstrates the continuing need for the city to provide support to our children and families and to invest in alternative response options to assist our officers.
After seeing the video, the boy’s father wants to file a complaint against the police.
According to Syracuse police, the situation is still under investigation.
Watch the GMA news report below:
In an extended version of Kenneth’s video that GMA didn’t show, he says that the police snatched the boy off his bike and handled him as if he was a grown man.
And, a boy who is believed to have been with the 8-year-old in the store, is heard saying, “it wasn’t him,” in the video implying that the boy that the police put in their car was not the one who stole the chips.
See the extended version of the video below:
Kenneth’s concern for the 8-year-old boy’s safety is completely understandable given the acts of police brutality that dominate the news these days.
Your thoughts?
