SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — A video posted on social media of an arrest in the Gaslamp on New Year's Eve has some questioning San Diego Police Officer's use of force.
As one use-of-force expert told 10News, he sees nothing wrong with the way it was handled.
An arrest in the Gaslamp Quarter on New Year's Eve drew a crowd of people, and cellphones captured part of it as it unfolded.
In the video, you can see a group of officers try to detain a man, Once he's on the ground, it appears several officers work to get him in handcuffs.
The video does not show the events leading up to the arrest and was edited when posted and shared with us. We blurred parts of the video due to nudity.
"This really appears to be what I would call necessary force." Paul Cappitelli is a former San Bernardino Sheriff's Captain. He went on to serve as Executive Director for the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training.
"There are those times where I have to call it like I see it and I've had to say that officer did commit excessive force in different situations. This is not an instance there."
In his opinion, officers acted professionlly. Including when the video shows one officer striking the man several times in the upper body and head area.
"Reverting to having to use physical force to strike a person is something they don't want to do unless they absolutely have to and in this situation having been in that role many many times, I think it was appropriate."
In a statement, a spokesperson for the San Diego Police Department said "Officers in the Gaslamp saw a man challenging uniformed security to fight."
They said he resisted arrest, grabbed an officer's shirt and neck, then fell on top of the officer.
The department said that while on the ground, the man "grabbed at another officer's genitals. That officer can be heard yelling on body-worn camera video, "Stop pinching me," three times, "Let go," twice, and then that officer yells, "He's pinching me. He started pinching my groin."
The man was arrested for resisting officers with violence. "Video of the arrest circulating on social media does not capture the incident in its entirety, nor does it provide a full perspective of the events that unfolded."
"Clearly I can see how sometimes the public gets up in arms because they see something that looks egregious to them, but the best thing that I can say is you really have to reserve judgment until all of the facts are in."
The executive director of the National Police Accountability Project said in part: "While officers may need to use some degree of force to gain compliance, they should only resort to striking an arrestee if they have exhausted other options like verbal commands."
