The Florida Sheriff’s Office suspended an officer who beats the driver in the face at a popular traffic stop.
William McNeil Jr posted a video when police smashed windows, hit him, and dragged him to the ground in Jacksonville on February 19 this year.
After the clip spread online, police released body camera lens McNeil, 22, refused to withdraw from the vehicle after being told he was removed from his post for a traffic violation.
A state prosecutor has not found any misconduct by the officer, but an internal review is also underway, the sheriff’s office said.
“The State Attorney’s Office has determined that even if the administrative review has not been completed, none of the officials involved have violated the criminal law,” Jacksonville Sheriff TK Waters said in a press conference Monday.
But he said an officer, D Bowers, has been deprived of his enforcement duties until he violated any sheriff’s office policies, otherwise his enforcement duties.
Sheriff Waters added: “A person must comply with the officer’s orders even if the person does not agree with the reason for the officer to stop.”
Ben Crump, a civil rights lawyer representing McNeill, said the incident was “an unsettling reminder of the historical violence against black Americans.”
Police released BodyCam footage the day after McNeil posted his clip to Instagram on Monday.
The BodyCam video shows officers told McNeil that he was pulled over for not wearing a seat belt or wearing a headlight in bad weather.
“This is daylight, I don’t need lights,” McNeil said.
He refused to leave the vehicle, asking to talk to the officer’s supervisor before locking the door.
About three minutes after warning him to get out of the car, the officer smashed the window.
The officer wrote in his arrest report that he called for a backup after McNeill refused to ask for a driver’s license, registration and insurance certificate.
“The suspect is reaching for a big knife to sit on the board there,” said officer Bowers in the arrest report.
In a video posted to social media by McNeil, his hand reached out as the police broke into the window.
He pleaded guilty to resist the violence-free police officer and driver revoked his driver’s license. He was sentenced to two days in jail.
McNeil said in his Instagram video that his teeth were broken and he needed to sew his mouth and suffered a concussion after being arrested.
“It’s hard to do that, and I didn’t recover from it, but eventually I had to speak out the news.”
Health & Wellness Contributor
A wellness enthusiast and certified nutrition advisor, Meera covers everything from healthy living tips to medical breakthroughs. Her articles aim to inform and inspire readers to live better every day.
