Bodycam footage released during a press conference on Monday showed of an incident where a Texas police officer had pulled over a black man because he had a “dirty license plate,” and then proceeded to shoot the man with a stun gun prior to handcuffing and arresting the man, Newsweek reported.
The footage of the incident is from January, according to Newsweek.
Police Bodycam Shows Black Man Shot With Stun Gun for “dirty license plate” https://t.co/HROKsGao1Q
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) November 17, 2020
The New Brunsfels officer, Kaleb Meyer approached Clarence Crawford’s car with his gun aimed at Crawford. While being instructed by Meyer to keep his hands on the steering wheel, Crawford became panicked, Newsweek reported.
“Please don’t shoot me officer. I’m black, please don’t shoot me. Don’t shoot me. Please, please, please,” Crawford can be heard pleading on the bodycam footage. (RELATED: Richmond Officer Prevents Woman From Taking Her Life, Police Say)
Officer Meyer then order Crawford to step out of his vehicle and get on the ground, face down, prior to stunning the man twice behind the knee, Newsweek reported.
After having handcuffed Crawford, Meyer can be heard on the footage explaining that he had pulled him over “for a dirty license plate.”
Crawford was charged for attempting to elude a police officer and interfering with the duties of a police officer but these charges were later dropped.
Meyer who had worked for the New Braunfels Police Department for less than two years has resigned from the department since the incident, Newsweek reported.
“Our officers are trained to be respectful, de-escalate situations, give clear and concise commands, listen to those they interact with, and to only use force when the situation deems in necessary. That training and our expectations were not met by officer Meyer during this traffic stop, and the experience Mr. Crawford had with him is not acceptable,” Robert Camereno, City Manager explained.