Photo Courtesy of Video Footage/ DeWitt Police Department
Rory Spain, a DeWitt, New York police officer, has been placed on administrative paid leave after he punched a handcuffed woman at Walmart on July 4, according to the department spokesman Lt. Jerry Pace.
Bystander-captured footage and DeWitt police bodycam videos showed the officer pummeling the woman, known as Tyreana Edmonds, when she attempted to bite him as he tried to arrest her.
According to Syracuse.com, officers were sent to the store after reciting a complaint about fighting among five to six people and were
told “employees were being threatened, struck in the face and that customers had also been pepper-sprayed,” Pace said.Pace stated that Edmond’s sister, Tajenik Byrd, allegedly used pepper spray during the argument with other people in the store.
Strangely enough, the Dewitt Pollice Department posted a narrated video to its Facebook page explaining the events of the incident.
In the footage, Spain is seen walking towards Edmonds while she is arguing with another customer. He grabbed Edmonds’ arm from behind and began to handcuff her.
“Get off my sister,” Byrd said.
“Leave him,” Edmonds replied. “… let him cuff me.”
As Spain attempted to arrest Edmonds, another person told the officer that Byrd had used pepper spray during an earlier argument.
“They tried to charge my sister,” Edmonds said in response to the woman. “They jumped my sister two days ago. My sister’s a month pregnant.”
Officer Corey Buyck later aggressively handcuffed Byrd by slamming her to the ground and straddling her.
Bystanders quickly surrounded the officers and yelled as they carried out their arrests and Spain ultimately pulled a taser out.
Edmonds tried to fight against her arrest. She fell to the floor and kicked a display of plastic boxes.
Spain then dragged Edmonds by her handcuffs and one leg, and she tried to bite Spain, who then punched her in the face.
Rebirth SYR leader Hasahn Bloodworth organized a protest on Friday night in the DeWitt Police Department’s parking lot to hold the department accountable.
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“Conclusions about whether the actions of the officers are consistent with department policy and the law will not be made until all facts are known and the investigation is complete,” Pace said.
Although the two women were released, they now face a number of charges due to the incident.