Attorney speaks out after LAPD bodycam video shows officer punching detained suspect in Watts
WATTS, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- After the Los Angeles Police Department released body camera video that shows an officer punching a detained man in the face, the man's attorney spoke out Thursday in an interview with ABC7.
The controversial footage, which was also recorded by a bystander, shows an officer hitting 28-year-old Alexander Mitchell as he was being handcuffed in Watts in the late afternoon of July 28.
On Wednesday, the LAPD posted on its YouTube page more than an hour of bodycam video from the incident.
"Punching in your face for being double-parked," Mitchell's attorney Brad Gage said. "How outrageous is that?"
The hourlong LAPD video can be viewed here. Warning: Graphic language.
According to police, officers were conducting a traffic stop on a vehicle that was double-parked - sitting against traffic - at the intersection of 113th Street and Graham Avenue.
Officers initially thought no one was in the car, saying the vehicle had "heavily tinted windows," but later learned Mitchell was inside. Police said officers ordered Mitchell to get out of the car and tried to place him in handcuffs.
"There was no reason to even try to handcuff him, that was already excessive," said Gage. "That was unnecessary. That was uncalled for."
Gage is representing Mitchell in what he calls a civil rights violation, saying the officer was aggressive from the start. He believes he could've just asked Mitchell to move his car.
"If he wasn't in the car, they'd give him a ticket and maybe tow his car - that's all that would happen," said Gage.
An LAPD statement released Tuesday described the incident: "During the handcuffing process, Mitchell resisted by refusing to place his hands behind his back and grasping his front waistband/pocket area with his right hand, preventing the officers from securing him. An officer then struck Mitchell on the right side of his face, enabling the officers to complete the handcuffing."
Gage said Mitchell's nose was broken, but not from the punch. Even though you don't see any additional swings in the bodycam footage, Gage claims Mitchell "was taken down to the ground" and "punched further."
"That's when his nose was broken," said Gage.
Eventually Mitchell was handcuffed and placed onto a gurney and taken into custody.
The officer was removed from field duty as the incident is investigated, per department standard procedure.
The LAPD Force Investigation Division has taken over the case at the order of Interim Chief Dominic Choi.
A recent statement from Choi reads, "I was concerned by the initial video circulating on social media and immediately directed a full investigation into all facts and circumstances of this incident. Above all, I want the people of Los Angeles to be assured that there will be appropriate accountability."
