Deputies Fight And Tase Man, Don't Call EMS - May 28, 2024
- 1 minute ago
On the date of May 28th, 2024, a sheriff's deputy/K9 handler in Caldwell Parish, Louisiana - who wasn't supposed to be on shift or working that day - suddenly got into a physical altercation with a black man in the town of Clarks. He didn't radio in that he was getting out with the man, causing the other deputies to be confused as to what was going on when, in the middle of the altercation, he called out "I'm hands-on with Andre!"
The Clarks police chief, who also happens to be a SO school resource officer, quickly arrived and tased the man, and requested backup - in that order. He then called "code-4" (meaning no further units required - and suggesting the man was in custody or at least in handcuffs) but we can hear the scuffle continuing and the man vocalizing in the background - which I have reason to suspect may have been the first deputy continuing to beat him. That deputy was, after all, involved in a very severe excessive force incident in January 2022 that left the victim with a fractured skull and spine. A detective then asked for confirmation that they didn't need any more units, to which the police chief confirmed. After that, though, the K9 handler again radioed in with "taser... taser engaged." So did he tase the man yet again after they called code-4 (and likely had him handcuffed)? We don't know - and thanks to our extremist governor gutting our state's public records law, I doubt we'll ever get our hands on actual video of this incident.
After a backup unit arrived, they took the man to the jail - WITHOUT calling for an ambulance or taking him to be evaluated at the hospital. SCOTUS has ruled several times that persons in police custody have a right to adequate medical attention if they are injured. With that in mind, these deputies may have violated the man's 8th Amendment rights by failing to have him evaluated after tasing (at least twice it would seem) and likely beating him.
After they dropped the man off at the jail, a deputy went back to "talk to" the "concerned citizen" who may have witnessed this. We don't know what that "talk" consisted of, but this department does have a documented history of retaliating against people who witnessed excessive force incidents. Of note, this was four days after governor Landry signed into law a bill restricting citizens' right to film police.
Also of note, three of the four deputies involved in this are defendants in two separate Federal lawsuits over excessive force incidents. The initial deputy is a defendant in a lawsuit over the 1/22 incident mentioned earlier, while the police chief and detective are defendants in another lawsuit over an incident in late 2019 or early 2020 involving an illegal traffic stop and excessive use of force. The parish sheriff is a co-defendant in both, plus a handful more.
It's also worth noting that this man was tased and injured by two other deputies in mid-2022, and they didn't call EMS for him that time either.
The Clarks police chief, who also happens to be a SO school resource officer, quickly arrived and tased the man, and requested backup - in that order. He then called "code-4" (meaning no further units required - and suggesting the man was in custody or at least in handcuffs) but we can hear the scuffle continuing and the man vocalizing in the background - which I have reason to suspect may have been the first deputy continuing to beat him. That deputy was, after all, involved in a very severe excessive force incident in January 2022 that left the victim with a fractured skull and spine. A detective then asked for confirmation that they didn't need any more units, to which the police chief confirmed. After that, though, the K9 handler again radioed in with "taser... taser engaged." So did he tase the man yet again after they called code-4 (and likely had him handcuffed)? We don't know - and thanks to our extremist governor gutting our state's public records law, I doubt we'll ever get our hands on actual video of this incident.
After a backup unit arrived, they took the man to the jail - WITHOUT calling for an ambulance or taking him to be evaluated at the hospital. SCOTUS has ruled several times that persons in police custody have a right to adequate medical attention if they are injured. With that in mind, these deputies may have violated the man's 8th Amendment rights by failing to have him evaluated after tasing (at least twice it would seem) and likely beating him.
After they dropped the man off at the jail, a deputy went back to "talk to" the "concerned citizen" who may have witnessed this. We don't know what that "talk" consisted of, but this department does have a documented history of retaliating against people who witnessed excessive force incidents. Of note, this was four days after governor Landry signed into law a bill restricting citizens' right to film police.
Also of note, three of the four deputies involved in this are defendants in two separate Federal lawsuits over excessive force incidents. The initial deputy is a defendant in a lawsuit over the 1/22 incident mentioned earlier, while the police chief and detective are defendants in another lawsuit over an incident in late 2019 or early 2020 involving an illegal traffic stop and excessive use of force. The parish sheriff is a co-defendant in both, plus a handful more.
It's also worth noting that this man was tased and injured by two other deputies in mid-2022, and they didn't call EMS for him that time either.