The Charlottesville Police Department has fired two white officers after two separate incidents in which they were accused of using excessive force against black men. The city released video of one incident today, and the chief of police issued an apology.
On January 11th, LaQuinn Gilmore left the hospital after treatment for an infected hand. He pulled over on a city street, got out of his car and threw up. Rookie cop Joseph Wood then pulled up behind him.
“Are you doing alright?" he asked.
"Yes, I’m okay," Gilmore replied. " I was taking antibiotics, and I had to puke. So thank you, man.”
Wood then turned to walk away, but when Gilmore said something about police harassment, the officer turned back.
“How about, hey – do you have a driver’s license? Let me see your driver’s license," he said.
" I didn’t do anything bad!" Gilmore said in refusing to provide a license. In fact, police say he didn’t have one, but he continued to insist he did nothing wrong and called out to a sleeping neighborhood.
“Hey – make sure y’all wake up in case he pulls a weapon," he shouted. "Man, I don’t have to stand here. I’m moving my car.”
As he began walking away a second officer arrived and Wood took action. Sir, stop now" he said, then wrestled Gilmore to the ground and handcuffed him.
“I just told you I just got out of the hospital, man," Gilmore pleaded.
"Put your hands behind your back! Why are you fleeing?" Wood demanded.
Medical records showed Gilmore, whose arm was in a sling, suffered a concussion and a back injury, returning to the hospital that night for treatment.
An internal police investigation concluded Wood unlawfully detained and searched Gilmore, although it disputed a claim that excessive force was used and concluded race was not a factor in his conduct.
In a second case, Officer Jeffrey Jaeger was prosecuted for assaulting a black man – Andre Henderson -- slamming him into a wooden fence after Henderson got into a screaming fight with the mother of his children.
The police department cleared Jaeger of wrong-doing, but after his conviction in court he received a suspended sentence and was fired. Police Chief Rashall Brackney apologized for both officers’ conduct.
“Their actions erode the community’s confidence and elevate fears that black and brown communities will be brutalized – over-policed and under-protected," she explained. "Their actions validated those community fears and concerns. They have harmed this community, and for their actions I am sorry.”
Wood has also been fired, and an attorney for LaQuinn Gilmore says he intends to sue the city.
