Video showing beating of homeless man by US police incites outrage
A newly-released surveillance video footage showing the beating of a homeless individual by California policemen has once again exposed the extreme brutality exercised by US police officers against potential suspects.
The footage was recorded last July by a closed-circuit camera at a bus terminal in California’s City of Fullerton in Orange County but was released on Tuesday at a pre-trial hearing of the police officers allegedly involved in the beating of the homeless man, which later resulted in his death.
The footage displays how the homeless man, Kelly Thomas, is being struck repeatedly with fists, batons and finally by the butt of a stun gun by police officers.
Fullerton police officer Manuel Ramos and Corporal Jay Cicinelli have reportedly been charged in the case with second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter and excessive use of force.
Testifying at the hearing, a trauma surgeon stated that the continuous compression of Thomas’s chest during his confrontation with California police officers led to breathing complications that eventually caused his death.
The surgeon, Dr. Michael Lekawa, pointed to audio and video recordings of the incident by a surveillance camera that clearly shows that Thomas’s voice changes from initial shouts of “I can’t breathe” to long, drawn-out moans before he completely stops talking.
State prosecutors insist that Fullerton police officer Manuel Ramos punched Thomas in the ribs, tackled him and pinned him down. They further contend that officer Jay Cicinelli used a Taser gun four times on Thomas as he screamed in pain and also struck him in the face eight times with the butt of the Taser gun.
Thomas lost consciousness following the incident and was taken to a hospital, where he passed away after five days.
Source: presstv.com
