Charlotte police talk community ties after video surfaced of Steele Creek bus stop arrest

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officers during a Monday night event shared their perspective on mental health in the profession, job pressures and keeping community ties strong.

The conversation came two weeks after a forceful, controversial arrest that went viral. On video captured by a bystander, officer Vincent Pistone was seen repeatedly hitting Christina Pierre, a Black woman who had clocked out from her shift at a nearby Bojangles. Police said that Pierre resisted arrest and struck an officer in the face.

Five CMPD officers spoke Monday with the Urban League of Central Carolinas Young Professionals at beSocial, a community space in Plaza Midwood. Though the event was sparked by the arrest and an announcement referenced it, the officers and moderator Ratasha Smith made no reference to it during the conversation.

Instead police shared what it’s like to be on their side of the law. Smith called the event a way to look forward.

“I would say the biggest thing is the unknown,” Capt. Stephen Fischbach told the crowd. “We pull a car over. We don’t know if this is little old Mabel who ran a stop sign and means absolutely no harm. Or we don’t know if that’s Mabel who just shot and killed her husband down the street.”

Police have to make split-second decisions, Fischbach said. When that happens, they fall back on their training.

Officers aren’t just trying to get home safely, Lt. Trent Beam said. They have to make sure that everyone else does, too.

Amid the pressures, conversations about mental health are less stigmatized than they used to be in law enforcement, the officers said.

“Twenty-five years ago, you didn’t talk about your feelings as an officer,” Maj. Jackie Bryley said.

Now, new officers often ask what the department does to help with mental health and are met with more support and resources, she said.

Community ties

When conversations about policing go national, they find their way uptown, the officers said.

In 2020, tensions between police and communities reached a new high, after video showed then-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin murdering George Floyd. Chauvin kneeled on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes.

Protesters demonstrated in Charlotte, too. Some went on to sue the city and CMPD, saying police ambushed them when they were herded onto Fourth Street and pummeled from three sides by tear gas, smoke grenades, pepper balls and other munitions.

One way to build relationships, Capt. Bret Balamucki said: getting out of the patrol car.

“It’s that face-to-face conversation that allows us to see people as neighbors and as partners, to be able to work through issues,” he said.

Community members might be angry or upset about an incident. And when officers talk to them directly, they can change their approach, he said.

The officers referenced a number of CMPD community programs, which seek to strengthen ties between the department and Charlotte and Mecklenburg County’s residents.

“There may be things that happen that create division, but I think no matter what, everybody wants to have a safe, loving, caring neighborhood,” Balamucki said. “And we want to be a part of that.”

CMPD has asked a judge for permission to release body camera footage of the arrest that sparked Monday’s event. In North Carolina, that release requires a court order.

Pierre faces charges of assaulting a government official, resisting and simple possession of marijuana. She is scheduled for court on Dec. 12, according to online court records.