Victoria, Texas police are investigating an officer who used a Taser on a 76-year-old man while trying to arrest him for an expired car inspection sticker, according to the Victoria Advocate.
Officer Nathaniel Robinson on Thursday approached Victoria resident Pete Vasquez over the sticker.
Dashcam video shows Robinson moving to arrest Vasquez after point to the back of the car he was driving. As Robinson went to grab Vasquez’s arm, he pulled away. Robinson then slams him against the hood of the police car and wrestles Vasquez to the ground.
The video then shows Robinson pointing a Taser at Vasquez, who out of the dashcam’s view. Police said Robinson used the Taser twice, according to the Victoria Advocate.
Vasquez was driving a car owned by the dealership at which he worked. The car still had dealer tags, which exempted the car from exemption, according to police.
Victoria police arrived on the scene after Robinson had used the Taser on Robinson. They took Vasquez to the hospital and did not cite him for the inspection sticker.
Victoria police chief Chief J.J. Craig told the Victoria Advocate that the dashcam footage “raises some concerns.”
“Public trust is extremely important to us,” he said. “Sometimes that means you have to take a real hard look at some of the actions that occur within the department.”
H/t Daily Kos
Injustice is a virus. Stop it early and often, which is why the protests against police using lethal force as a first choice in nonlethal situations serve all of us.
Editing errors: “exempted from exemption” and “after Robinson had used the taser on Robinson”
A 76-year-old black man would have been shot with a 9 mm.
You got that right. Especially in Victoria.
Wow, really? For pointing out typos?