Three police officers on Monday pleaded not guilty to charges of battery after they were filmed repeatedly beating a 64-year-old man outside a bar in New Orleans.
Footage from Associated Press showed Robert Davis being punched in the face, his head striking a wall, before being bundled to the ground by four officers and subjected to blows and kicks. He was handcuffed and left lying in a pool of blood. A fifth officer grabbed an Associated Press TV producer, jabbed him in the stomach and launched into a tirade, shouting: ”I’ve been here for six weeks trying to keep alive. Go home!”
Police said Davis was arrested for drunkenness, resisting arrest, battery and public intimidation. A mugshot showed his eye swollen shut, and cuts on his neck.
The alleged assault comes at a difficult time for the New Orleans police, which has been plagued by claims of brutality and corruption. About 250 officers allegedly deserted in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and the police chief, Eddie Compass, quit last month. On Friday, state authorities said they were investigating claims that police stole 200 cars from a showroom ahead of the storm.
”We have great concern with what we saw this morning,” said Captain Marlon Defillo after viewing the footage. ”This department will take immediate action.”
Davis, who is black, was allegedly assaulted on Saturday night in the historic French Quarter, which has reopened for business after the hurricane. Three of the police officers appeared to be white, the other light-skinned.
Two officers were apparently federal personnel. Numerous agencies have sent police to help with patrols in the aftermath of Katrina, and Defillo said it would be up to their commanders to decide if they would face any charges. He denied race was an issue but said that the officers had been suspended without pay.
”Our police officers are working under some very trying times,” Defillo said. ”But it doesn’t excuse what our jobs are supposed to be.”
Officers slept in their cars and worked 24-hour shifts after the hurricane struck.
According to reports, about three-quarters of police officers have lost their homes while their families are scattered across the US. Two have committed suicide. Conditions have since improved — officers now have beds on a cruise ship, albeit no private rooms — and are still working five 12-hour days. – Guardian Unlimited Â