A video has gone viral on social media that shows a Chicago police officer body slam a man who was accused of drinking alcohol in public. You can watch the video later in this article, but be aware that it’s disturbing. However, there’s more context than the video shows; one local journalist says officers claim the man spit in an officer’s eye and mouth.
The Chicago police spokesman acknowledged the existence of the video and responded to a journalist’s tweet sharing it. Journalist Tia A. Ewing of Fox 32 news wrote on Twitter on November 28, 2019: “Warning, this video is graphic! A man was seriously hurt after being slammed to the ground by @Chicago_Police on Thanksgiving Day in Chatham when he allegedly spit on an officer while being detained for drinking alcohol in public. @chicagosmayor.”
Ewing later shared more details from police, who said that, on November 28, 2019 at 3:58 p.m., officers in an unmarked vehicle observed a 29-year-old male drinking an alcoholic beverage in plain view inside of the bus stop. Officers placed a street stop on the offender. The offender then became irate and licked the face of an officer, simultaneously verbally threatening the officer. Shortly after, the offender then spit in the same officer’s eye and mouth. The officer then performed an emergency take down, taking the offender to the ground. Officers immediately notified EMS and the offender was taken to the University of Chicago in stable condition. The officer went to an area hospital. This incident is currently under investigation.”
The video shows the man and officer standing near a squad car before the officer appears to slam the man down on the pavement. The video originated on the Facebook page of Jovonna Alexiss Jamison, who wrote, “Look At What The F*ck The Police Just Did To This Boy On 79th And Cottage Grove ??He Wasn’t Doing Sh*t , I Pray To God That Boy Not Dead , Check On Yaw People Mann Forreal ..Another Innocent Young Man Smfh .” Here’s the video as it appears on her page:
Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi wrote on Twitter: “An arrest that occurred in the 700 block of E. 79th is under investigation tonight as actions depicted on a social media video & the complaints of citizens are being taken very seriously.”
In a separate statement shared by Guglielmi, the Chicago superintendent of police said that the incident “is under investigation as the actions in the video are concerning. The specifics of what transpired prior to officers executing an emergency takedown will be scrutinized closely by us and the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA). If wrongdoing is discovered, officers will be held accountable.”
Here’s what you need to know:
Some Are Raising Concern About the Police Actions in the Video
A civil rights advocate and radio host raised concern. Ja’Mal Green wrote on Twitter that he had “talked to authorities about this situation the last few hours. This was excessive force and they’ve said since it wasn’t a shooting he’s not on administrative leave. Excessive force should be enough to shelf him until we decide his punishment, he could’ve KILLED this man!”
Jamison told The Chicago Sun Times that the unidentified man “didn’t do anything aggressive, he just stood there,” and “he was standing there using his cellphone. They took away his bottle of liquor and threw it.”
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