(Video above via WBRC: Raw footage of Tuscaloosa Police tasing and arresting University of Alabama students)
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The Tuscaloosa Police Department has launched an internal investigation after video surfaced online of a group of officers using force to subdue several University of Alabama students at a late-night party.
The incident occurred at an off-campus apartment complex after a noise complaint prompted a large group of police officers to respond shortly after 3 a.m. Sunday morning.
In cell phone videos shot from multiple angles, an officer can be seen standing in the doorway of the apartment holding a college-aged male by the shirt with one hand while wielding a baton in the other. A second male threatens to slam the door on the officer — even motioning several times in an apparent attempt to make the officer jump back — while a female loudly demands to know whether anyone is being “arrested or detained.”
The officer then points his baton at the male whose shirt he is grasping and says, “He is under arrest.” Tensions continue to rise as numerous people inside the apartment loudly demand to know for what the individual is being arrested.
The officer tries to pull the man out of the doorway of the apartment, but ultimately lunges into the room to grab him after pushing another man down. A brief melee ensues as other officers get involved. The man being placed under arrest appears to be tased outside the apartment while a woman inside the apartment screams obscenities.
A second male and a female are also snatched up by police and drug outside.
The temperament and approach of the police officers shown in the video varies greatly, with some cursing and seeming to taunt the occupants of the apartment, while other officers calmly try to deescalate the situation. The same could be said of the different individuals inside the apartment as well.
The Tuscaloosa Police Department issued a statement after the incident saying “a full investigation of the circumstances that are depicted in these videos will be conducted and all appropriate measures taken to ensure the integrity of the Tuscaloosa Police Department in serving the citizens of Tuscaloosa.”
The Crimson White has released cell phone videos of the incident taken from numerous angles. They can be viewed here, here, here and here, but be aware that they contain explicit language.
This story may be updated if more information is made available.
Tuscaloosa PD have been made ware of videos of an incident on Nov 8, 2015. A full investigation of the circumstances is being conducted.
— Tuscaloosa Police (@TuscaloosaPD) November 9, 2015
.@TuscaloosaPD has forwarded videos of an arrest made this morning to internal affairs investigators. Full investigation to be conducted.
— City of Tuscaloosa (@tuscaloosacity) November 9, 2015
Cell phones capture violent altercation between police and Univ. of Alabama students (Video) https://t.co/q4Kt4VBCI9
— Cliff Sims (@Cliff_Sims) November 9, 2015
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