Recorded on body cam video dragging a paraplegic man from his car, Ohio police officers are under investigation after no charges were filed against the victim.
At 12:27 p.m. on September 30, Dayton police officers pulled over Clifford Owensby after reportedly leaving a suspected drug house in the area. After Owensby provided his identification, the officers ran his information and requested a K-9 unit upon discovering his drug and weapon history.
According to a newly released police body cam video, an officer ordered Owensby to step out of the car when Owensby informed him that he could not step out of the vehicle because of his medical condition. Although the officer offered to help Owensby exit the car, Owensby refused.
“No, you’re not. No, you’re not. You’re not going to touch me. You are definitely not going to touch me,” Owensby can be heard saying in the video. “There will be a lawsuit if you put your hands on me for no reason, bro.”
As the cop repeatedly ordered Owensby to exit the car, Owensby made a phone call requesting witnesses with cameras to record the incident for his safety. After Owensby asked the officer to call his supervisor, the officer grabbed his arm as another cop helped to yank him out of the vehicle.
In the video, the first officer gripped Owensby by the neck and hair while dragging him onto the street. Shouting at witnesses, Owensby cried, “Can y’all call the real police, please?”
The first officer drove his knee into Owensby’s injured back, while Owensby yelled out in pain. After they cuffed his hands behind his back, two other officers dragged him to the back of a patrol vehicle.
According to the police report, the K-9 sniffed throughout Owensby’s car and located a bag of $22,450 in cash, but no drugs were found. A police report from the incident cites misdemeanor obstructing official business and misdemeanor resisting arrest in the crime status information, but Owensby has not been charged with either count.
Owensby later told The Dayton Daily News, “I feel like they don’t even respect me as a citizen.”
He added, “I’m hoping for some kind of disciplinary action and furthermore, I wish that this doesn’t happen to no one else. This is unacceptable. We’re supposed to have officers out here to serve and protect and when we lose faith in them doing that, who do we turn to?”
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said in a statement on Friday: “The video of this police interaction is very concerning to me. No matter where you live or what you look like, everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect when dealing with Dayton Police.”
Mayor Whaley confirmed that the incident remains under investigation. The Dayton Police Department has refused to disclose the names of the officers involved.
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