Photo courtesy of the New York Post
A now-viral video captured three Syracuse police officers detaining an 8-year-old boy and placing him in a patrol car after allegedly stealing a $2 bag of Doritos.
The four-minute and 20-second video, which garnered more than 5 million views Wednesday morning, began when a bystander recorded the incident while asking what the officers were doing to the child he described “looks like a baby to me.”
Kenneth Jackson started the recording after he saw one of the officer’s arresting the 8-year-old boy at one of the corner stores in the city’s Northside.
“What is y’all doing?” Jackson asks an officer holding the child as he starts crying.
“Guess. Guess what I’m doing,” the officer responds.
Jackson continued to question why the officers were arresting the young boy.
One officer told Jackson: “He’s stealing stuff. If he breaks into your house and steals something…” The recording faded out during the last part of the officer’s response.
“Y’all treat him like a hardcore, blooded f—— killer,” Jackson replies.
The officer says: “Keep walking, dude. You don’t even know what you’re talking about.”
Jackson told CNY Central that he was concerned for the child’s well-being and decided to intervene.
“There’s a way that the police need to interact with kids and what they did that day was completely unacceptable,” he said.
Jackson initially posted the video on Facebook, where it garnered substantial attention before the incident was shared on other social media platforms.
On Tuesday, Syracuse police issued a statement claiming the child was never placed in handcuffs, and the bodycam footage was being reviewed.
“We (SPD) are aware of a video being shared on social media involving several of our Officers and juveniles accused of stealing from a store on the City’s northside. The incident, including the Officers’ actions and body-worn cameras, are being reviewed,” the statement said. “There is some misinformation involving this case. The juvenile suspected of larceny was not placed in handcuffs. He was placed in the rear of a patrol unit, where he was directly brought home. Officers met with the child’s father, and no charges were filed.”
Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh said he contacted Chief of Police Kenton Buckner regarding the video, NBC News reported.
“When the online video was first shared with me on Monday, I was concerned. I asked Chief Buckner and the SPD to review all body-worn camera footage, which is ongoing,” the mayor said.
He continued: “The officer knew the child from prior interactions,” Mayor Walsh said in a statement, “and explained to him that he was being taken home. The officers returned the child to his family and discussed the incident with his father before leaving without filing any charges. What occurred demonstrates the continuing need for the City to provide support to our children and families and to invest in alternative response options to assist our officers.”
Dr. Keith Taylor, a policing expert at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, told CNY Central that police officers followed proper procedures when dealing with a minor.
“You don’t see any inappropriate use of force by the officers,” Dr. Taylor said. “They’re simply doing their job.”
Meanwhile, Michael Sisitzky, senior policy counsel for the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the police officers traumatized the 8-year-old.
“No child should ever experience abuse at the hands of law enforcement. There is no justification for the Syracuse police to traumatize an 8-year-old,” Sisitzky said.
“Spinning concern about petty crimes into fears about public safety is irresponsible and reckless, causes a lifetime of harm to Black and Brown children, and is straight out of a broken playbook. The City of Syracuse must investigate this incident immediately and hold these officers accountable for any wrongdoing,” he added.
The child’s father, who is of Ethiopian descent, acknowledged his son’s wrongdoing but complained about how the officers handled the incident.
“The policemen, they are not children. They are not boys. They’re men,” Weah told the New York Post.