Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Sheriff: Deputy on Video Punching Black Man in Georgia Fired
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
September 14, 2020

Share

A sheriff’s deputy in Georgia has been fired after being captured on video repeatedly punching a Black man during a traffic stop, authorities said Sunday.

The deputy was being let go for “excessive use of force,” the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. It did not identify the deputy, but said a criminal investigation has been turned over to the district attorney’s office.

Roderick Walker, 26, was arrested and beaten after Clayton County sheriff’s deputies pulled over the vehicle he was riding in Friday with his girlfriend, their 5-month-old child, and his stepson for an alleged broken taillight, his attorney, Shean Williams of The Cochran Firm in Atlanta said Sunday. The deputies asked for Walker’s identification and got upset and demanded he get out of the vehicle when he questioned why they needed it since he wasn’t driving, Williams said.

The subsequent arrest, captured on video by a bystander and shared widely, shows two deputies on top of Walker, one of whom repeatedly punches him. Walker’s girlfriend screams and tells the deputies Walker said he can’t breathe. A child in the vehicle yells, “Daddy.”

As Walker is handcuffed, the deputy who punched him tells the bystander that Walker bit him.

Williams said his client denies biting the deputy. Walker was trying to survive and lost consciousness at least twice during the beating, Williams said. A photo of Walker taken later in jail shows a welt under his left eye.

A Court Denied Bond for Walker Because of Outstanding Warrants

“My reaction to the video is that it just shows unfortunately another incident where an African American male’s civil rights have been violated by people and officers and law enforcement who have the duty first to protect and serve,” he said.

Walker later wobbles and appears to try to jerk free as deputies get him on his feet. He was arrested on suspicion of obstructing officers and battery, according to jail records. Williams demanded his release on bond and said he has asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to review the case. He also accused investigators of improperly talking to his client without an attorney at the jail.

A person who answered a call to the sheriff’s office said he could not comment further, citing an ongoing investigation. He declined to provide his full name.

The sheriff’s office said in its statement a court denied bond for Walker because of outstanding warrants, including a felony probation warrant out of Fulton County for cruelty to children and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

It said Walker had received medical attention and was being monitored by a doctor at the jail hospital.

Walker, his girlfriend, and the children had dropped off a rental car and found a driver willing to take them home for $10, Williams said. The driver was also Black. Williams said he was released without a citation, though he, too, did not have identification.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Trump Admin Cuts Billions in Biomedical Health Research Funding

DON'T MISS

Here’s What We Know About a Commuter Plane Crash in Alaska That Killed 10 People

DON'T MISS

Trump’s 3rd Week: More Executive Orders, a Trade War That Wasn’t, and a Mideast Jolt

DON'T MISS

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

DON'T MISS

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

DON'T MISS

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

DON'T MISS

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

DON'T MISS

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

DON'T MISS

Sony PlayStation Network Outage Enrages Gamers Around the World

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He’s Firing Kennedy Center Board Members, Naming Himself Chairman

UP NEXT

Alaska Legislature Asks Trump to Retain Denali’s Name

UP NEXT

Flu Season in the US Is the Most Intense It’s Been in at Least 15 Years

UP NEXT

Search Underway Along Alaska’s Western Coast for Plane Carrying 10 People

UP NEXT

FBI Agents Who ‘Simply Followed Orders’ in Jan. 6 Probes Won’t Be Fired, a Justice Official Says

UP NEXT

Where Will Californians Rally During Nationwide Protest Against Trump Administration?

UP NEXT

Hawaii Volcano Produces Tall Lava Fountaining in Latest Episode of Kilauea Eruption

UP NEXT

Protests in All 50 States Against Trump’s Administration on Wednesday

UP NEXT

Crews Lift First Wreckage From D.C. Plane Crash Out of Potomac

UP NEXT

Who Gets More Disaster Aid? Experts Explain More About FEMA

UP NEXT

Elon Musk’s DOGE Gains Access to Social Security, Medicare Payments

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

7 hours ago

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

8 hours ago

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

8 hours ago

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

8 hours ago

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

8 hours ago

Sony PlayStation Network Outage Enrages Gamers Around the World

8 hours ago

Trump Says He’s Firing Kennedy Center Board Members, Naming Himself Chairman

8 hours ago

PJ Pickles, the Pajama-Clad Pup, Want to Join Your Loving Home

9 hours ago

Newsom Signs $50M Plan to Battle Trump Policies, Support Immigrants

24 hours ago

Fresno Students Entering the Work World Need Your Help to ‘Dress the Part’

1 day ago

Trump Admin Cuts Billions in Biomedical Health Research Funding

The Trump administration has announced a drastic cut in biomedical research funding, slashing billions of dollars from the National Institut...

1 hour ago

1 hour ago

Trump Admin Cuts Billions in Biomedical Health Research Funding

5 hours ago

Here’s What We Know About a Commuter Plane Crash in Alaska That Killed 10 People

6 hours ago

Trump’s 3rd Week: More Executive Orders, a Trade War That Wasn’t, and a Mideast Jolt

7 hours ago

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

8 hours ago

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

8 hours ago

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

8 hours ago

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

8 hours ago

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend