Mulberry, Arkansas video of police beating sparks civil rights probe, excessive force case
Federal authorities are probing civil rights violations in connection with the violent Crawford County arrest Sunday of a South Carolina man in Mulberry.
Two Crawford County Sheriff's deputies and a Mulberry police officer have been placed on leave pending the outcome of the investigation. An attorney for one of the deputies has said there is more to the story than is seen on video so far.
Arkansas police caught on video
The arrest, caught on video, showed law officers punching, kneeing and holding down Randal Ray Worcester on the pavement. The violent arrest video posted on social media has been criticized by Gov. Asa Hutchinson who called the arrest reprehensible in a Monday news conference.
Related coverage: Arkansas police video sparks investigation into incident. Here's what we know
The investigation
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Arkansas, the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, and the FBI Little Rock Field Office have opened a civil rights investigation into Worcester's arrest.
"The FBI and the Arkansas State Police will collect all available evidence and will ensure that the investigation is conducted in a fair, thorough, and impartial manner," a statement from the U.S. Attorney reads. "As this is an ongoing investigation, we are not able to comment further at this time. The federal investigation is separate and independent from the ongoing state investigation.”
What led to the incident
Worcester was jailed Sunday on complaints of making a terroristic threat. He allegedly threatened a person at a store in Alma before riding to Mulberry on a bicycle where he was confronted by two Crawford County deputies and a Mulberry police officer.
Zack King, Levi White, Thell Riddle relieved of duty
Zack King and Levi White were identified by the sheriff's office as deputies in the video and Thell Riddle was identified as the officer from Mulberry. All were placed on leave after the incident. Worcester posted bail and was released, his attorney David Powell of Fort Smith said.
Powell said he will try to get any criminal charges against Worcester dismissed.
"That is on the table," Powell said.
Russellville attorney Russell Wood, who is representing the deputies, said dashboard camera video from the Mulberry police patrol car has not been released in the case, but he thinks it will show more about what happened before the arrest.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Arkansas police video: Arrest beating probed by Department of Justice
