A Black man was beaten by police for reportedly walking on the wrong side of the road.
The incident occurred in Hamilton County, Tennessee, on May 23, 2020, according to police dashcam video and WRCB.
Someone called the police on Reginald Arrington Jr., 32, because he was allegedly walking in a community and asking questions. When police arrived on the scene, they questioned Arrington, who reportedly told them he was in the area to visit a female friend after his car broke down at a nearby Super 8 hotel. However, he told cops that the female friend asked him to leave and he had difficulties finding his way out of the community.
The police told Arrington that he would be arrested for violation of a pedestrian in the roadway statute for walking on the wrong side of the road, facing away from traffic.
Fearing for his life, Arrington told the authorities that he was unarmed and did not want to get shot. He emptied out his pockets and laid on the ground with his arm stretched out. The police then began to tussle with Arrington, placed him in handcuffs and beat him with their batons as he moved on the ground in an attempt to protect himself.
Arrington can be heard yelling, “I didn’t do anything. I can’t breathe. … You’re about to kill me, man.”
The police officers involved, Sgt. Mickey Rountree and Cpl. Brian Killingsworth, and sheriff’s deputies Nick Dewey, Todd Cook and Charlene Choate, have yet to be reprimanded for their actions.
Hamilton County District Attorney General Neal Pinkston reportedly referred the incident to the Department of Justice for possible investigation and notified Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee.
All charges against Arrington have since been dropped.
View dashcam video footage of the incident below.
