The Sacramento Police Department is in damage control after a pregnant woman claimed cops threw her during an attempted arrest. Officials admit it all started with a mistake, but they insist no one knocked her over. In a bid to prove their point, they released body-cam footage on Thursday.
It all happened July 9, according to a press release by Police Chief Daniel Hahn. Cops apprehended the female driver of a stolen vehicle, and in doing so, identified a male suspect, the statement said. They not only got a physical description of the man, but his last known address too.
Investigators got a warrant, and checked out the location. When they did, they claimed to see a man matching the description sitting by a front door of the place that the suspect was allegedly at. Cops ordered him to surrender. He ran, locking the door behind him, police say. Cops claim a pregnant woman blocked the door.
She refused to follow officer’s commands to move, so an officer grabbed her arm and pulled her to the left of him and out of the officers’ path to the doorway. After the officer let go, it appears her momentum took her from the paved walkway to the uneven grass surface. She lost her balance and fell to the ground.
No arrests were made. Cops acknowledged that they got the wrong guy. Medical personnel were called after the woman complained about feeling pain.
The soon-to-be mother, identified in media reports as Zityrua Abraham, filed a complaint with the Sacramento Police Department Internal Affairs Division on July 11. Hahn said it took so long to release the body cam footage because they needed to investigate the incident first, and didn’t want to compromise the probe, which remains ongoing. None of the officers involved have been put on administrative leave.
Turn to 0:40 in the footage above to see the moment in which the woman fell–it happens just outside the frame, however. Parts 2, 3, and 4 of the release video are also available.
Multiple officers are clearly present in the video. The statement did not clarify if other body cam videos are available. LawNewz.com reached out to the Sacramento Police Department for comment. Sergeant Bryce Heinlein said that all four body cam angles are on the press release.
“Only 45 percent of our officers in the department have been issued cameras so far,” he said. “We are in the process of training and deploying cameras to all of our officers. We anticipate that this process will be complete by October 2017.”
[Screengrab via Sacramento Police Department]
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