NYPD officer clobbers woman who appears to assault him, knocking her flat on her back. Police were arresting her boyfriend — an attempted murder suspect.
Cellphone video caught the moment a New York City police officer hit a woman who appeared to assault him during the arrest of her boyfriend — an attempted murder suspect — knocking her flat on her back on a Harlem sidewalk.
What are the details?
The video shows officers arresting the suspect on West 136th Street near Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard just before 5 p.m. Tuesday when Tamani Crum — a 19-year-old Bronx resident — rushed up to the scene, the New York Daily News reported.
Crum confronted an officer sources identified as Kendo Kinsey, the Daily News said. The pair appeared to exchange initial contact, with the officer easily sending her backward a few feet.
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @etanthomas36
But Crum moved toward the officer again and appeared to hit or slap him on his right shoulder — and then the cop apparently had enough.
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @etanthomas36
With that, the officer hit Crum fast and brutally hard, appearing to strike her in the face or head, after which Crum fell to her back on the sidewalk.
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @etanthomas36
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @etanthomas36
Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @etanthomas36
One witness is heard yelling in the video as Crum held her hands to her face, telling the cop, “You’re wilding, bro!” and referring to Crum as "a little girl."
The officer who hit Crum and another officer then picked her up and handcuffed her. Police said Crum was charged with assault on an officer, obstructing governmental administration, and resisting arrest, the Daily News reported.
Former NBA player Etan Thomas posted video of the incident on Twitter and noted that the cop who hit Crum "has ZERO business being a police officer & should be fired immediately." Thomas then asked Mayor Eric Adams if he has "the moral courage to publicly condemn this?”
Content warning: Racial slur
\u201cHe has ZERO business being a police officer & should be fired immediately. @ericadamsfornyc do you have the moral courage to publicly condemn this ? You can\u2019t be #BackTheBlue regardless if they are right or wrong. That\u2019s not leadership\u201d— Etan Thomas (@Etan Thomas) 1661910293
Rev. Al Sharpton was supposed to hold a press conference about the incident Wednesday afternoon, the paper said.
What did police have to say?
The NYPD stated that the officer’s actions were justified, the Daily News reported.
Kinsey and other cops were arresting 22-year-old Elvin James — a suspect in an Aug. 12 case of attempted murder, the paper said. During his arrest, James was found with a loaded gun and drugs, police added to the Daily News.
Also during the arrest, an angry crowd gathered and began assaulting officers, the paper said, citing NYPD statements. One officer suffered a minor head injury, the Daily News said.
Faith Harrell, 27, was hit with the same charges as Crum, along with menacing and harassment, the Daily News reported. A 26-year-old woman was given a summons for spitting at an officer, the paper added.