In a video that was shot by a subway rider on a Bay Area Rapid Transit Authority (BART) railcar, a transit cop tasers a black rider for no reason. The police were told that someone on the car was harassing riders, but passengers told the cop that was not the case. Despite this, in the video, the officer orders the man off the train; when the black rider refuses and sits down, he gets tasered by the cop. The officer then drags the man down the aisle of the train.
Several minutes later, three more cops enter to assist in the arrest as the man lay helpless on the ground. One of the cops instructs his comrades to taser the man again even though the black suspect is motionless and handcuffed. The same white cop tasers the black man again for five full seconds, to the audible horror of the crowd. One spectator was so shaken she reported the police brutality to officials.
In response to the incident, BART officials released the following statement:“As per policy and protocol BART Police have initiated the proper investigation into this incident.”
The video has been sent to the independent investigator for BART police, whose policy states that a taser “can only be used if a suspect poses an immediate threat of bodily harm to the officer or another person.”
