It seems like the United States can’t even go a day without new accusations of police misconduct somewhere in the country, and as we’ve seen again and again in the past year, it can get pretty heinous.
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The latest incident making headlines involves officers handcuffing a 5-year-old boy and telling him again and again that he deserved to get beaten.
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Two police officers were called in for assistance after the child ran away from his Maryland elementary school back in January. They apprehended him just a block away, and the nearly hour-long body cam footage from the journey back to the school and the time spent waiting for the child’s mother to arrive is deeply disturbing.
Before putting him in the police car, a male officer takes an aggressive tone with the child, demanding to know why he’s out of school and yelling at him until he starts crying.
The officer continues berating him as he sobs in the car, and the interactions both officers have with the kid back at school are even worse.
“I hope your mama lets me beat you,” the female officer tells him as he sits in the office crying.
The male officer later handcuffs the boy in front of his mother and tells him that when he’s old enough to make his own decisions, those cuffs will be his “best friend.”
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“Do you know what these are for?” he asks. “These are for people who don’t want to listen and don’t know how to act.”
Snippets of the body cam footage circulating online have horrified viewers, and many are demanding for the officers involved to be fired.
This is why police should not be the only professional handling this delicate situation. A social worker should have been involved. And, I don’t believe they were handled your child like this. Just saying!
— Iris Perry (@IrisPer30102526) March 28, 2021
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As this happened several months ago, the Montgomery County Police Department says they have already conducted an internal investigation, and it would appear neither officer involved has been let go as a result.
But the boy’s mother has filed a lawsuit against the police department, the school district, and the county itself as a result of the trauma she says her child experienced over this incident.
*First Published: March 29, 2021, 10:51 am
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