Does YouTube video show police brutality?
An Internal Affairs review has been launched over a YouTube video that shows a man getting walloped repeatedly by a baton-wielding cop in West Philadelphia on Friday.
Does YouTube video show police brutality?
An Internal Affairs investigation has been launched over a YouTube video that shows a 29-year-old man getting walloped repeatedly by a baton-wielding cop in West Philadelphia on Friday.
Police spokesman Lt. Frank Vanore said last night that Internal Affairs investigators are examining the video, which shows two and a half minutes of an encounter that cops had with Askira Sabur outside a takeout shop at 55th Street and Lansdowne Avenue. (Click here to view the video.)
Vanore said Sabur was among a group of men who were asked by a pair of patrol cops to leave the corner. Sabur instead allegedly knocked one of the cops to the ground, he said, although that portion of the encounter is not shown on the YouTube video.
Sabur's attorney, Evan Hughes, said Sabur didn't knock down the officer. "This guy was standing on the street corner, talking to his cousin," he said. "They tell him to get off the corner, and one cop pushes him on top of another cop."
From there, the incident appeared to turn ugly. One officer is shown on YouTube repeatedly striking Sabur in the head, back and arms while a crowd of onlookers howls in protest. The same officer is shown pulling out his handgun and briefly gesturing towards the crowd with the weapon before shoving it back into his holster. At least three other cops are shown hovering around Sabur during the incident.
Vanore said Sabur bit another officer and tried to grab the cop's gun during a brief struggle; he was later charged with aggravated assault and related offenses. There was likely more to the story, Vanore added, than what was shown on the brief video.
Sabur suffered a broken arm and needed numerous staples to close gashes on the back of his head after his encounter with police, his attorney said.
"If he tried to grab a gun, they would have shot him," Hughes said. "They're trying to justify this, and come up with things that he did not do."
Sabur, of Conestoga Street near Media, was sentenced to five years of probation in 2002 on an attempted burglary charge, court records show.
"He's not a bad guy," Hughes said. "They could have killed him. Lucky for him they didn't, but they certainly got close."
J-JOE,are you black or from the hood?if not please tell me,what the hell you know about what black people go though in the hood.— BLACKGUY34- Follow what the cops say and move on. If u dont listen then u pay the consequences. Enough said. You would think that people know this but everybody in West Philly doesnt listen to anybody. Take a stroll in any of the neighborhoods(hoods) and you can see that these people dont respect anything, property or people. But of course all want a hand out. Get a life, get a job and be a functioning member of society. Dont be the problem, fix the problem.— irishlaxer
- I don't trust the Philadelphia police dept at all. I don't get it all those cops could not hold him down and arrest him ? NO they wanted to beat him. The police in this city treat black people like trash. They think all blacks in this city are criminals. They don't care all they want is a pay check. The city will hire the most Ignorant and uneducated people to be police officers and they wonder why people have little to no respect for city police. How many times is the mayor going to let people be beat in the street like dogs ?
- We can get the cops in shape. Attach a crate of donuts to a rope from a car's bumper. Ride around , at about 12 mph, for an hour or until one cop can run and catch it. Do this every day until they all weigh under 250 pounds. Or at least the women cops.— Delaware Jim
- "do what he was told", "clearly he was resisting arrest" You people are a complete joke. I would love to hear what real men like Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin would have to say about continued police aggressiveness and self provoked confrontation with citizens. Read the news people, it's not just "hood" people getting roughed up, it's citizens that are pulled over and don't submit and act like they are being questioned by a higher power. They are trained to be alpha-male dogs and treat citizens like criminals - at all times. When you give up a little liberty for a little security, you lose both and deserve neither. A country of cowards we have become. Daddy protect me cause I'm too much of a punk to protect myself!!— phillyjeffsr
- His friends tell him to stop fighting. He continues. He gets a beat down. Lesson? Don't fight with Police.— bmacwire
- He is just looking for a free pay day. You resist you get hit. Don't feed the animals.— inkystinky45
- Rereading these comments, I'm just embarrassed that this is what has become of a country of men who once beat Hitler and the Empire of Japan. Once stood toe to toe with, at the time, the greatest military in the world during the Revolution. And now we cheer on a bunch of fat bullies beating a guy up for standing and talking to his cousin. You people are punks, keep submitting to the will of the government.— phillyjeffsr
- Funny, I parked near NBC newsvan last night interviewing people on that corner without knowing why while I stopped to buy a soda at a store on that block. Now I know why news van was there. I had a feeling it was for something crime-related, given the area.— dglass1
- He didn't resist people. Consider the guy was beating on him with a very hard stick. Should we not expect more self control and intelligence from the police??? If these FOUR cops and later FOUR MORE, cannot handcuff one injured/beat man then they need to be fired for abject incompetencey. Like it or not they are supposed to "serve" the citizens. No one was being abused by the man on the ground. I've been in many threatening events and there is always a way to settle the issues w/ot lowering to hitting with a stick....a scared punk brain deficient cop who should be fired.— stoneman
Comment removed.- this is bs, the guy was resisting arrest, if he put his hands behind his back he would have never been hit once, he the people in the background are yelling stop fighting it, stupidity at its finest— jbettner
- This can't be brutality if the only complaint you people have is of the size of the officers involved.— Trident252
- thank you PPD for doing what you do. If there is a benefit to raise money for attorney fees to defend these fine officers please make sure it's well publicized so I can be sure to support it. Great work and be safe. And to the law abiding people of West Philly, good luck and be safe.
- From get off the corner, to that beat down? Those cops were soooo far out of line it's ridiculous.— Manny-Mann
