AN ALABAMA POLICE officer has pleaded not guilty after being shown on a video throwing an grandfather onto the ground, partially paralysing him.
A video released by the police department in Madison, Alabama, shows an officer, named as Eric Parker, tripping a handcuffed man, slamming him into the ground.
Parker appeared before Limestone County court yesterday, pleading not guilty to third degree assault. He will reappear before the court on 29 April.
The FBI is conducting a parallel inquiry to ascertain if there were any violations of federal law.
Muncey said he had recommended that Parker be fired and he apologized to the victim, Sureshbhai Patel, a 57-year-old grandfather who had traveled from India to visit his son.
Patel had gone out for a morning stroll. A short time later, police received a 911 call that a “suspicious person” was wandering around the neighborhood.
On the 911 call, the caller is heard saying that Patel is “just kinda walking around” and describes Patel as a “really skinny black guy”.
The caller says that he is following Patel from a distance.
Parker, a field training officer, and a trainee exited the police car and approached Patel, who speaks no English.
The video footage shows Parker throwing Patel to the ground.
Patel’s son, Chirag, told Al.com that his father had tried to communicate with the officers, telling them “No English. Indian”.
He said his father had difficulty moving his legs and the family didn’t know if he would get better.
A longer video shows Parker telling Patel to “stop trying to walk away from me”. He then lifts him to his feet, asking if he can walk.
Alabama Governor Robert Bentley apologised to the Indian government for the treatment of Patel.
Bentley’s office released a letter to Indian general consul Ajit Kumar a day after the two men met to discuss the case.
A lawyer for Patel, Hank Sherrod, said the man has left the hospital and is now in rehabilitation for injuries that include partial paralysis of his left leg.
Donors have given about $185,000 on GoFundMe to pay medical expenses for Patel, who Sherrod said does not have insurance.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say