A sheriff’s deputy in suburban Atlanta has been fired after viral videos showed two officers pinning down an unarmed Black man while one punches him in the face repeatedly.
According to CNN, Roderick Walker and two others were cruising in a ride-share vehicle was stopped by Clayton County sheriff’s deputies because of a “taillight violation.” The deputy reportedly asked Walker to produce his driver’s license, although he was a passenger, not the driver. When Walker reportedly asked the officers why he needed to show his ID when he did nothing wrong, the situation quickly escalated and the officers demanded that he step out of the vehicle.
The disturbingly violent encounter was captured by at least two people nearby. The videos show a deputy repeatedly punching Walker in the face, drawing blood that streamed down the side of his face. The unnamed officer claims Walker bit him.
A person who identifies herself as Walker’s cousin, Zippora Dunlap, posted one video on her Facebook page, while another person by the handle of @jah.vis posted another angle of the arrest on his Instagram page.
Walker is currently being held without bond in the Clayton County Jail on two counts of battery and two counts of obstructing or hindering law enforcement officers.
Sheriff Victor Hill of Clayton County, Georgia, south of Atlanta, announced that an internal investigation has been opened on the unnamed deputies involved. The deputy depicted punching Walker multiple times on video was initially placed on leave without pay. The combined weight of the two officers on Walker, rendered him unconscious as his girlfriend and child screamed for officers to stop beating him, WSB-TV reported.
“After being made aware of a video posted on social media involving a Deputy using physical force on a man, Sheriff Victor Hill ordered his entire Internal Affairs Unit to come in and begin an investigation that has been on going since 8 pm (Friday),” the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Saturday that was obtained by CNN.
The deputy who was placed on leave on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2020, was fired on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2020, the sheriff announced on Twitter.
SHERIFF VICTOR HILL Acts On Internal Investigation Concerning Excessive Force On Social Media Video. https://t.co/bFy4gYVAbB
— SheriffVictorHill (@SheriffVHill) September 13, 2020
No word yet if the ongoing investigation will result in criminal charges filed against the fired deputy, WSB-TV states.
Georgia NAACP lawyer Gerald Griggs demands that Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill resign and that the two officers involved in Walker’s savagely violent beatdown be terminated. Griggs also demands that District Attorney Tasha Mosley drop all of the charges against Walker. A protest rally was scheduled for Sunday afternoon at the Clayton County Jail.
“It’s time for the law to work for Brown and Black citizens the way it works for White citizens,” Griggs said.
Flip the page to see the extremely disturbing videos of the police encounter (WARNING: NSFW).
