City officials in Rohnert Park are investigating an incident in which an officer is seen on video drawing his gun on a man who wasn’t accused of committing a crime.
KGO reported Wednesday that the officer happened by the man’s house and the two argued after the man filmed the officer.
According to Don McComas’ video post, the officer pulled up to his court, crept towards his home, drove around and stopped his cruiser in front of the home. When the officer stayed there, the unarmed resident felt concerned enough to start filming.
In the five-minute video, the unnamed officer eventually begins to take pictures of McComas before exiting his cruiser and drawing his gun. He then demands McComas take his hands out of his pocket.
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McComas eventually complies as he backs away from the officer saying, “You don’t touch me!” as the officer follows him.
“What’s wrong with you, man?” asks the officer. “Are you some sort of constitutionalist, crazy guy, something like that?”
The officer then tells McComas to put the video on YouTube. “I don’t care,” he says.
No arrests were made.
Rohnert Park City Manager Darrin Jenkins said the city will review protocols to determine if they were followed and will conduct a full investigation into the incident with an independent outside investigator.
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McComas’s lawyer, Daniel Beck, said his client thought he was going to die during the interaction and is now planning on suing the city and the police.
“This is a situation of somebody who was able to photograph and give a clear case of police abuse,” said Beck at a press conference Thursday. “Are we now in such a state that we have to protect ourselves against those that are supposed to protect us?”
According to the City of Rohnert Park’s Facebook page, the officer was placed on temporary paid administration leave.
CBS reported that fallout from the incident has caused cancellations of police events, notably Coffee with a Cop.
– with files from the Associated Press
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