Dozens of concerned citizens gathered outside of Binghamton City Hall in upstate New York on Monday to protest what they say is an officer’s use of excessive force against a Black man during the early morning hours of New Year’s Day.
Video of the arrest, where a Binghamton Police Department officer appears to be kneeling on or near Hamail Waddell’s neck, has been circulating on social media, prompting activists to ask if members of law enforcement have learned anything since George Floyd’s death.
A police report made after the arrest noted that Waddell and several others had been involved in a late-night fight outside Dillinger’s Irish pub. As a result, the young man was charged with resisting arrest.
Local station WIVT reports that witnesses claim Waddell, who is of Asian and African-American descent, was not involved in the fight.
Those witnesses state a group of white men jumped a different man of color, alleging police watched from a distance until…
Read the full article here
