Brutal arrest of black man puts Ohio town on edge (VIDEOS)
An Ohio town wants answers after seeing footage of a violent arrest during a routine traffic stop. Police beat a man and arrested him and his woman companion, who is heard pleading with the man to “stop” and “just let them do what they do.”
On Saturday, Richard Hubbard III, 25, was driving through the Cleveland suburb of Euclid when he was pulled over by Officer Michael Amiott.
Euclid police say Amiott’s reason for stopping the man was because he rolled through an intersection without stopping. A search of his vehicle revealed he was driving with a suspended license. Hubbard has been charged with driving under suspension and resisting arrest.
A bystander, Lashaunda Malone’s video surfaced of Amiott throwing Hubbard to the ground and incessantly punching him, before officially making the arrest. The footage went viral on the internet over the weekend, garnering 6 million views on Facebook.
The Euclid Police Department released their own dashcam footage of the incident Monday. Town officials, activists and residents are now questioning the excessive force used by the officer during the arrest. Hubbard appears to be passively resisting in the videos, according to WOIO.
Amiott can be heard saying, “Face away from me,” in the dashcam video. Almost immediately, the officer shoves Hubbard against the car and grabs his arms. The two men then struggle to the middle of the street, where the officer slams Hubbard onto the pavement. As this happens, another officer rushes over to help his colleague. Hubbard’s companion is then caught on video racing to the scene and shouting at Hubbard.
“Bae, please look at me,” she pleads as the officers try to pin Hubbard to the ground. “Bae, stop. Please listen, just let them do what they do,” she begged Hubbard.
Hubbard is seen trying to block blows being thrown on him by the officer who is now on top of the man. One of the officers saw Hubbard “reaching down,” at which point Hubbard tells the officers he does not have a gun on his person. Hubbard then screams, “Record this s—! Record it!”
Hubbard’s companion then goes to retrieve a cell phone in the car. One officer then punches Hubbard in the head or upper body eight more times. At this point, bystanders arrive. The officers then cuffed Hubbard’s hands behind his back while one bystander looked on and yelled, “Look at this,” and “He ain’t resisting.”
At the end of the incident, officers also handcuffed Hubbard’s female companion.
“What am I under arrest for?” she yelled. The video finishes with Hubbard and the woman being taken away in handcuffs.
“The videos of the incident on Saturday morning raise some very serious concerns,” Euclid Mayor Kirsten Gail said in a statement, according to a press release. “We have policies and procedures in place to ensure that all use of force by police are both lawful and justified. I can assure you the incident will be reviewed thoroughly and appropriate action will be taken.”
The police responded in a statement, saying, “This entire incident will be reviewed, in detail, so that the public can have a full and open understanding of the series of events that eventually led to this violent encounter.”
Hubbard was medically examined in the Cuyahoga County Jail Euclid Annex on August 12, a Euclid Police Department news release said.
Amiott went to an area hospital after the incident, where he was treated and released. He has been placed on administrative leave pending further review of the videos.
Last month, Amiott was accused of using excessive force against Shawn George, 25, an African-American Euclid city worker, according to WKYC.
