Police brutality continues to rear its ugly head across the United States as individuals in positions of power decide over and over again that the brutal display of that power is the best way to get what they want. Video has newly emerged of a violent incident that occurred late last year when an Albion, Michigan police officer named Tyler Collins beat a young black teenager while he was handcuffed in response to a call from family asking for help in calming him down. The teen, 13-year-old Da’veon Cieslack, suffers from cerebral palsy and mental health issues.
In the video that’s been released, one of the cops on the scene can be heard complaining that he had been repeatedly called out to the residence. Collins, who’d also come in response and might have shared in that frustration over being asked to do what’s at least supposed to be their job, began ruthlessly punching Cieslack while he was cuffed and in the back of a police car after he kept lashing out. Collins has been fired over the incident — but that’s all. There’s been no pursuit of criminal prosecution or even any civil citation — even though the teen himself was given a year of probation for “resisting arrest.”
The boy’s grandmother Tommie Wright has tearfully shared:
‘I thought it was very terrible. They shouldn’t have did that like that. He was begging and pleading, please don’t take me, and if I had known that they were going to take him, I would have said something, but I thought they were just talking to him like they usually do.’
Watch:
Footage shows police repeatedly punching a 13-year-old with cerebral palsy while his hands were restrained pic.twitter.com/wMScvIo4K1
— NowThis (@nowthisnews) May 13, 2019
Wright has called for authorities’ help in caring for her grandson a few dozen times or so over the last several years, but on every other occasion, they helped calm him down as opposed to the violence they inflicted on the defenseless teen the last one. The police are the ones who originally told the boy’s grandmother to call them in incidents where he was getting out of hand so they could assist, according to media reporting. The Albion community held a rally in support of justice for Cieslack and holding local police accountable for their actions on May 9.
This is far from the first time that an incident like this has occurred and surely won’t be the last. A full five years after murdering New York City resident Eric Garner, local cop Daniel Pantaleo is only just now facing an internal disciplinary trial that could maybe lead to his firing — he’s still serving on the force to this day and is facing no current criminal charges. The list of similar incidents including the murderous cop walking free could go on and on.
The trend flies in the face of arguments from people like President Donald Trump who question why people are concerned about the treatment of black Americans. Trump stood before the world and derided those in protest to bring attention to the issue as “sons of bitches.” Underneath the tumult of his lunacy, however, the issue continues to rage.
Featured Image via screenshot
