The mayor of Phoenix is issuing an apology following nationwide outrage over a video showing the arrest of a black mother and father.
Mayor Kate Gallego took to Twitter over the weekend to call the actions of the two Phoenix PD officers "completely inappropriate and clearly unprofessional." The cellphone video taken by a witness shows officers, who were not wearing body-cams, pointing guns and yelling threats at 22-year-old Dravon Ames, his pregnant fiancee, and their two young daughters after their daughter shoplifted a doll from a Family Dollar store.
Gallego said the video has made her "sick" and she is deeply sorry to the family that went through it. As a result of the incident, the mayor says all officers will be equipped with body-cams by August and is calling for a community meeting tomorrow to address the situation. The officers involved have been placed on desk duty, pending an investigation.
The reaction by police was shocking because it created a standoff and the video shows police reacting as if a major crime had been committed. The two young daughters, ages one and four.
The couple is filing a ten-million-dollar lawsuit against the City of Phoenix claiming police officers committed civil rights violations and injured the youngest daughter. A philanthropic branch of Jay-Z's entertainment company Roc Nation has offered to provide legal support for the couple.
Source:NPR