South Carolina police have released a gruesome bodycam footage of two officers forcefully arresting a 13-year-old boy as he was selling flowers outside a Walmart store. The video shows officers Dante Ghi and Katherine Kirkland approaching the teen on April 1 at a Walmart location in Summerville, South Carolina, and asking him for his photo I.D. and business license. The 13-year-old is shown asking why he needs to show the documents.
“You’re getting ready to go to jail is why,” one of the officers replied.
Officer Ghi is seen grabbing the boy’s arm in the video before trying to force the boy’s head between his legs. According to the Atlanta Black Star, Kirkland later said the boy “struck” her in the face with his fist during the struggle. Police also provided a photo of a bruise Kirkland sustained under her eye. However, the video doesn’t show the child hitting the officer.
State Rep. Martin Pendarvis, who is representing the child’s family, said in a statement that the teen couldn’t have punched the officer.
“What you see is (his left hand) handcuffed, and the other officer has him subdued and engaged with his right hand. It’s hard to come to the conclusion, in my mind, that there would have been time (to strike) this officer,” Pendarvis said, the Atlanta Black Star reported.
