Video of Florida Teen's Arrest Appears to Show Police Punching and Tashing Teenager

Lina PortmanMay 30, 2024

0 3 minutes read

LAKELAND, Fla. — The arrest of a 16-year-old in Lakeland has gone viral after a video appears to show police beating the teen with closed fists and using a Taser.

The video does not show what led to the incident.

According to a Lakeland police affidavit, on Monday, an officer was dispatched to the Caroline Apartments in the 1900 block of Griffin Road in Lakeland. The first call to police was due to people being in the pool at an apartment complex who apparently did not live there.

The affidavit says the officer approached several people near the pool and the 16-year-old refused to give them a valid apartment number.

The document states that the manager of the apartment complex asked police for unauthorized entry into the home of those who did not live there and that police said he told the 16-year-old that he was be entered without authorization and leave the property.

“The police came and told the children to leave, they were going to invade them. The children left, but one of the children realized that they had left their clothes. They went to get their clothes,” said Clayton Cowart, founder of the association. Justice Association for Poor Minorities.

The affidavit states the teen “continued to ignore my verbal commands and put his hand in front of my face, while stating, 'I don't need to talk to you.'”

According to the affidavit, officers said they then began taking the teen into custody. Police officers at the scene gave this account of the arrest.

“I tried to grab (the teenager) by his right arm, but he immediately tensed his body and tried to free himself from my grip. I informed (the teenager) that he was in a state of arrest and that he should stop resisting I was able to maintain control of (the teenager) as I guided him towards a wall (The teenager) began to wave his arms at Officer Diaz. and me, almost hitting each other in the face several times (The teenager) hit me in the face once with his closed fist.”

The affidavit states officers were able to arrest the teen after “several closed fist strikes and a Taser deployment.”

“The real big issue is why are these adult police taking care of a kid like this,” Cowart said.

Cowart provided ABC Action News with video of the arrest. When the video begins, the officers appear to be attempting to take the teen into custody.

Editor's Note: The following video shows part of the teen's graphic arrest. Viewer discretion recommended.

Video of Florida teen's arrest

In the video, we see the police beat the teenager with closed fists, grab him by the hair and finally use a Taser on him.

Lakeland police charged the teen with “trespassing, failure to leave property, battery on a law enforcement officer and violently resisting an officer.”

The document states the teen was taken to the hospital for medical evaluation before being taken to the juvenile assessment center.

“To be honest, my reaction is Lakeland is doing it again,” Cowart said.

ABC Action News spoke with Life Malcolm, the attorney for this teen and his family. He said the 16-year-old was still seeking medical attention.

“This terrible experience that he went through took a serious toll on him, both mentally and emotionally,” Malcolm said.

Malcolm said they want the charges dropped, officers suspended without pay while an investigation is conducted, and transparency and truthfulness from Lakeland police.

“Don't hide the ball. If there is a body-worn camera on the officers, we need to see the footage,” Malcolm said.

Cowart said there will be a protest this Saturday at 6 p.m. in front of Lakeland police to demand action after this incident.

ABC Action News has contacted the Lakeland Police Department multiple times regarding this incident for a statement, interview and body camera footage.

Late Wednesday afternoon, we received this statement:

“Police Chief Sam Taylor has requested an administrative review by our Office of Professional Standards. Consistent with our agency's policies and procedures, and pursuant to Florida State Statute 112.533, we will not be able to release no further material related to this matter until the conclusion of the administrative review.”