Day after Council votes to slightly reduce police funding, officer rolls bike over person’s head and neck
A Seattle Police officer was caught on video intentionally rolling their police bicycle over the head and neck of a man lying face down in the street last night as people protested the lack of charges against the officers who murdered Breonna Taylor in Kentucky.
The officer was walking the bike and stepped over the man lying face down, then purposefully rolled the bicycle first over the man. The front wheel goes over his head, then the rear wheel goes over his neck. The man is in obvious pain as it happens. CJTV captured the moment during a live stream.
In a statement, SPD said they are aware of a video circulating on the internet that apparently shows an SPD bike officer's bike rolling over the head of an individual laying in the street. This matter will be referred to the Office of Police Accountability for further investigation." Of course, the bike didn't roll itself over an individual, an officer intentionally rolled the bike over the person's head and neck. UPDATE: The King County Sheriff's Office will investigate the incident, according to the SPD Blotter.
Caution, the video is disturbing:
The police at the #seattleprotests just ran over an injured mans head with their bikes. @SeattlePD is this how you train your officers? pic.twitter.com/c4e146tsmi
- Martin Banks (@WarlockBranis) September 24, 2020
It's assault, it's violent and the officer did it knowing that cameras were rolling and that we were all watching. It's shocking to see just how comfortable this officer is while casually hurting someone who could not possibly pose any threat. These police bikes, made by Washington State bike maker Volcanic, are heavy both in design and because they are carrying lots of equipment.
The police are out of control, and Mayor Jenny Durkan is doing nothing to stop them. Instead, she is spending her time and effort protecting the department from any budget cuts. The City Council this week defended its mid-year budget, which included very modest cuts to the SPD budget, by voting 7 to 2 to override Mayor Durkan's veto. The vote was a moment of victory for people who have been pouring their hearts out in the streets all summer protesting against racist police violence and advocating for investments in community, especially Black community.
But the City Council can only write laws and pass the budget. They are not in charge of the day-to-day operations of the department. The Mayor refuses to work with the Council supermajority or defend the people of her city from police violence. She is the wrong mayor for this moment, and it's hurting people. The City Council is trying to lead, but the Mayor is digging in and defending the police. And the people in our streets are exposed and vulnerable to an increasingly unhinged Police Department.
The Council's cuts to the SPD budget require firing officers. This officer has just volunteered for termination and shouldn't sit around on city payroll awaiting trial for assault. But this is just one incident caught on tape. There are many other officers with a history of violence. Prosecutors even keep a list of officers who are so untrustworthy that they cannot be used as witnesses in court. Yet these officers remain on city payroll working in our streets with a badge and gun.
The nationwide protests against police brutality demonstrate clearly that this is not just a problem of a few bad apples." But surely we can start with the worst offenders and go from there.
With the mid-year budget passed, the debate over Seattle's 2021-22 budget is set to begin. The Council will have a lot more options to make even bolder changes in this larger and longer-term budget compared to the mid-year budget adjustment. And there's so much more work to do. More than ever, Seattle's government needs to demonstrate to its people that we are capable of making big changes to defend Black lives and invest in community safety and prosperity. Our Council leaders have already shown great leadership and political bravery. So be sure to send them a thank you and urge them to continue to lead.
Overrode the Mayor's veto:
- Lisa.Herbold@seattle.gov
- Tammy.Morales@seattle.gov
- Kshama.Sawant@seattle.gov
- Dan.Strauss@seattle.gov
- Andrew.Lewis@seattle.gov
- Teresa.Mosqueda@seattle.gov
- Lorena.Gonzalez@seattle.gov
Defended the Mayor's veto:
And urge the Mayor to either work with the Council supermajority or accept that she's the wrong mayor for this moment and resign.