Arkansas Police Beating Video Sparks Massive Outrage; Incident Now Under Investigation

Arkansas State Police have now placed an incident under investigation where three local law enforcement officers were shown on video footage beating a man during an arrest attempt.

One of the police officers was seen repeatedly punching the man in the head and even smashing his head against the pavement. Officials identified the three law enforcement personnel as Deputy Zack King, Deputy Levi White of Crawford County Sheriff's Office, and Mulberry police officer Thell Riddle.

Arkansas Police Beat Man

All three of the suspects have been removed from active duty amid the investigation into the incident. Video footage of the arrest was viewed millions of times on social media platforms and immediately sparked outrage among the public.

While one of the officers beat the man, another repeatedly uses his knee to hit the man in the back. The two could be seen dressed in the uniform of the Crawford County Sheriff's Office as the third officer restrains the man on the ground while the beating takes place, as per BBC.

As the man was being beaten, he attempts to cover his head with his hands and appears to be trying to roll up into a ball to protect himself. One Twitter user referred to the case of George Floyd, the Black man who was murdered during a police arrest in 2020, leading to global protests.

A woman who could not be seen in the video recording can be heard saying, "Don't beat him! He needs his medicine!" One law enforcement personnel responds with an expletive while another officer orders the female to get inside her vehicle.

According to NBC News, the incident was recorded on Sunday outside of a convenience store in Mulberry. The man was being arrested for alleged trespassing and other crimes, said the Arkansas State Police in a statement.

Brutal Incident

The man, who was later identified as 27-year-old Randal Worcester of Goose Creek, South Carolina, was hospitalized with unspecified injuries before being put in jail. The three law enforcement personnel's conduct was "reprehensible," said Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson during a news conference on Monday.

Hutchinson said that despite not having all of the details of the incident and the man having a history of concern, the response was not consistent with the training that police officers receive at the Arkansas Law Enforcement Training Academy.

The Arkansas governor said that, in addition to a probe by Arkansas State Police, the United States Justice Department was also investigating the incident. In a statement on Sunday, Crawford County Sheriff Jimmy Damante said that the two deputies were suspended amid the probe.

The two Crawford deputies were not rookies in law enforcement "for some time," while the Mulberry officer has been policing for "many years" and previously worked for the sheriff's department, said Damante.

One of Worcester's attorneys, Carried Jernigan, said that they do not yet know what would happen if the woman was not recording the incident. She said that the fight was escalating with the officers and the woman could be heard yelling, who the attorney said saved Worcester's life, CNN reported.

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