An attorney says he plans legal action against Florida police officers who handcuffed an unruly five-year-old girl. Police were called to the elementary school in St. Petersburg March 14th after the girl acted up in her kindergarten class. A video camera, which was rolling as part of a classroom exercise that day, captured images of the girl tearing papers off a bulletin board, climbing on a table and punching an assistant principal. The 30-minute tape shows the child appearing to calm down before three officers pinned her arms behind her back and put on handcuffs as she screamed, "No!" The camera was rolling March 14 as part of a classroom self-improvement exercise at Fairmount Park Elementary, attorney John Trevena said. A lawyer for the girl's mother says the officers went too far. He says "It's incomprehensible." Police are investigating the incident. Trevena disagreed, saying it appeared to him the two educators followed the girl too closely around the room. "It almost seemed like there was an intent to provoke the child," he said. Akins, the girl's mother, said she had complained to the school about the assistant principal's treatment of her daughter. She said the administrator has been too harsh with the girl. The police had been called to the school at least once before in response to the girl's behavior. The girl has since transferred to another public school. [more] and [more] and [more]
- SEE the video Yourself. Little Black girl is doing nothing but sitting in a chair minding her own business when police roll up, confront and arrest. [more] and [more] Don't believe the hate in the media - from a legal stand point the first half of the video is basically meaningless for the cops. No dangerous or exigent circumstances exist before or during the arrest requiring the use of such force. The pooh butt prosecutor said that he is interested in finding out what happened before the tape started rolling. This little girl broke no laws. It would be far more useful to know what happened after the tape stopped rolling.
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