Photo: Getty Images
The Canton, Ohio Police Department is under fire after video circulated on social media showing an officer kicking a Black man in the chest while he was kneeling on the ground with his hands raised.
In a statement, Canton police confirmed that officer Brandon Momirov kicked 21-year-old Jaemiier McElroy while responding to reports of an argument last month, per NBC News.
Police said multiple people, including one individual alleged to be armed, fled the scene when they arrived. However, suspects "appeared to be complying when Officer Brandon Momirov kicked Jaemiier McElroy ... in the chest," the department said in a statement.
McElroy and two other men were arrested on suspicion of "obstructing official business" and resisting arrest, according to a report.
"Our officers frequently face stressful, dangerous situations and confrontations with armed suspects," Police Chief John Gabbard said in a statement. "Their dedication to the community has resulted in exceptional reductions in violence, especially gun violence, over the past two years."
Police said the officer who kicked McElroy remains employed as they probe his actions. McElroy's attorney, Bobby DiCello, said his client was taken to the hospital following the incident and remains in "a lot of pain."
The attorney also dismissed Gabbard's statement as "laughable." DiCello said he's working on multiple police brutality cases involving Canton officers.
“There’s a group of people in Canton that are law enforcement officers who are treating ordinary civilians like enemy combatants,” DiCello said.
Watch video of McElroy's arrest here.
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