<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4WkKiY_0w9JCr8f00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4WkKiY_0w9JCr8f00" width="1320" height="743" >PHOENIX (TNND) — Newly released bodycam footage showing two Phoenix police officers shouting at and punching a Black man who is reportedly deaf and has cerebral palsy sparked outrage among civil rights and disability activists.The video released by an attorney shows Tyron McAlpin, 34, being tased by police and punched as he is lying face-down on the ground.Police stated in a report obtained by CNN that they were trying to question McAlpin after a man claimed he was punched by someone trying to steal his bike. When the man pointed to McAlpin as a suspect, officers followed him to a nearby parking lot.McAlpin now faces two counts of aggravated assault and one count of resisting arrest after police claimed he took a "fighting stance" when officers approached him. On Tuesday, the Maricopa Attorney's Office told the media initial theft charges were dropped.The Phoenix Police Department told CNN the officers have not been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation."This incident is the subject of an ongoing internal investigation and was assigned to the Professional Standards Bureau on August 30, 2024," police told The National News Desk in a statement.Bodycam footage shows one of the officers telling McAlpin to "stop where you're at" and "have a seat" before immediately grabbing him and a fight breaks out.<blockquote>His hands raised to deliver targeted punches at my face/head, and multiple swings with closed fists at my head,” one of the officers wrote in the incident report.</blockquote>The video continues to show McAlpin on the ground as the officers yell at him to put his hands behind his back and tase him multiple times.Shortly after the altercation, a woman identifying herself as his wife pulls up to the scene and tells police her husband has a disability."You guys are messing with him for no reason," she is heard saying on the video.After police ask about his disability she states he is deaf and has cerebral palsy.<img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1DvbDh_0w9JCr8f00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1DvbDh_0w9JCr8f00" width="648" height="365" >"I’ve been on the phone with him since Circle K,” she adds before police question how she spoke to him on the home if he is deaf."Because I spoke sign language, that's why, I signed to him," she answered.The police report states McAlpin was then taken to a hospital by ambulance "for precautionary measures."The Arizona NAACP condemned the assault and called for the officers to be placed on administrative leave until a full investigation into their conduct is completed.<blockquote>This brutal assault was due to the false claims of a white citizen, reminiscent of many falsehoods like Emmit Till that have claimed the lives of black citizens in America,"Vice President of the Arizona State Conference NAACP, Andre Miller said in a statement. "Tyron was not a suspect in an actual crime, he had not done anything wrong, and he also has communication challenges, his assault happened seconds after the police vehicle was put in park. No true communication in this encounter was present.</blockquote>McAlpin pleaded not guilty and spent 24 days in jail before making bond, CBS News reported.The Arizona Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing said it was "deeply disheartened by the unwarranted incident during a law enforcement interaction with a Black, Deaf, plus disabled individual whose language is ASL."In June, the Department of Justice released a report stating the Phoenix Police Department and the City of Phoenix "engage in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law."<img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1MCCYo_0w9JCr8f00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1MCCYo_0w9JCr8f00" width="648" height="365" >It specifically outlined using excessive force, unlawfully detaining or arresting people experiencing homelessness and discriminating against Black, Hispanic and Native American people when enforcing the law.Attorney General Merrick Garland said the report was "an important step toward accountability and transparency."The National News Desk reached out to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office for comment and has yet to hear back.An initial pretrial conference for McAlpin is scheduled for Nov. 13 and a trial for late February.</div></body>

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Bodycam footage shows Phoenix police punch and tase deaf, disabled man

PHOENIX (TNND) — Newly released bodycam footage showing two Phoenix police officers shouting at and punching a Black man who is reportedly deaf and has cerebral palsy sparked outrage among civil rights and disability activists. The video released by an attorney shows Tyron McAlpin, 34, being tased by police...