beatyourselfup:

CHP Brutalizes & Hog-ties Pregnant Woman (Fast Forward To 3:19)

Young woman was pulled over for improperly using her cell phone by California Highway Patrol officers. After first stopping on the right shoulder, she was ordered to not stop there, to go forward and get off freeway. Because of rush hour traffic noise, she did not hear clearly what she was directed to do.

Additionally, besides being typically scared after being lit up, and now confused about where she should go, she thought that she should go to the shoulder on the left side of the freeway and she changed lanes to her left to do this. When the CHP vehicle followed and then turned on its siren, she was told to pull off the freeway again, which she promptly did on the right shoulder after driving less than 1/4 mile. Once stopped, she was told to turn off the ignition, throw the keys out and exit. She did that and then two officers approached, one pointing his gun at her, yelling for her to turn around. She just stood absolutely paralyzed in terror with her hands open and to her side.

As the officer came up to her, she told him she was pregnant (which the officer admitted in his report), as she turned around in fear of him. The officer then kicked her feet out from under her and slammed her to the pavement face down. He then bent down on her, putting his left his knee on her neck, handcuffed her while also kicking her rib cage with his right foot. Even though she never resisted whatsoever, back up officers then HOGTIED her. She was then lifted up and placed on her left side in the back seat of the patrol car and driven to the station, which took about 20 minutes.

The police report stated falsely that after exiting the car, she was talking incoherently even though she said nothing except being pregnant, and that she was hogtied because she was flailing her legs, which she clearly did not. She is charged with evading and resisting arrest.

Out of all fairness, it did appear she was driving erratically to evade the police officer. But I think their use of force was not justified. A single officer could have easily turned her around, leaned her up against the car (without hurting her), and arrested her peacefully. But instead, she got kicks, knees, hog-tied, and slammed on her stomach.