San Francisco officials are launching an internal investigation after a video was released that shows an officer pushing a man in a wheelchair into the street.
The incident took place Jan. 18 during an arrest in the Visitacion Valley neighborhood. Bo Frierson, who happened to be friends with the people being arrested, approached the police to find out information about the detainment. Several SFPD officers can then be seen pushing the wheelchair-bound man out of the way as spectators look on.
Suddenly, one officer, identified by pedestrians as Officer Carrasco, is seen pushing Frierson, who has a spinal injury, into the street. The man filming the incident runs over to save Frierson, who almost falls out of his wheelchair. According to the Huffington Post:
“He tried to dump me out, you can see, a couple of times. Lucky for the seat belt,” Frierson told ABC 7 News. “What if I were to just fall on my face? I mean, I could have died.”
One officer is heard saying, “He f*cking ran my foot over,” as the bystander comes to aid Frierson. The men who were handcuffed were given citations for alleged possession of open alcoholic beverages. Another was cited for suspicion of obstructing an officer. It hasn’t been confirmed if Frierson was the man given the citation.
Another angle of the incident shows one of the officers stopping the wheelchair from hitting the ground, but didn’t stop his fellow officer from moving the man into the street.
Officer Grace Gatpandan, a spokesperson for the police department, confirmed Wednesday that an investigation has begun. The Office of Citizens Complaints has also looked into the case. Officer Carrasco and the other officers in the video have not been penalized.
SOURCE: Huffington Post | VIDEO CREDIT: YouTube
