The above video was released last month showing a gang of white plainclothes overseers (officers) attacking two Black teenagers. Officers assaulted the youths because "they appeared to be in violation of curfew" during Mardi Gras. The video, which lacks audio, shows 17-year-old Sidney Newman and 18-year-old Ferdinand Hunt standing against a wall. The officers approach quickly as the boys appear to have their backs turned to the white men. All the officers are wearing jeans and other casual attire - one has on a backwards baseball cap, another has beads around his neck. The officers tackle the teenagers to the ground and then pounce on them. [MORE]
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State Police say undercover officers did not use excessive force in the French Quarter take down of two teenagers. An internal investigation by State Police concludes there was no wrong-doing, and officers used minimal force. State Police concluded no one was struck, hit, or kicked; and no weapons were drawn. WGNO News Reporter Darian Trotter asked, “What do you see in that video? I see an abuse of power,” King replied. Danatus King is President of the New Orleans branch of the NAACP. He says the conclusion by State Police is baffling. “Any and all evidence that was relied upon by State Police should be released to the public so that the public can get a better understanding as to why the State Police came up with that conclusion,” King said. In a statement, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu weighs in saying, “Based on what I saw on the video tape, State Police did not handle the incident in the right way.” “Based on what I’ve seen, I believe it was wrong.” “Somebody should release the rest of that tape so that everybody can understand what happened,” said ACLU’s Marjorie Esman. Esman is working to make sure the teens’ civil rights were not violated. She agrees the video clip leaves many unanswered questions. “If in fact it’s not excessive force then we all need to know more about why not; and what happened before the piece of video that we’ve all seen,” Esman said. An independent investigation continues by the Department of Justice. |