State Rep. Sam McKenzie demands release of body camera footage of violent Starbucks arrest
Tennessee state Rep. Sam McKenzie is pressing for transparency in the aftermath of an arrest by Knox County Sheriff's Office deputies that left a Starbucks shift manager bloodied and bruised.
McKenzie, Democrat of Knoxville, is calling for the immediate release of police body camera footage. He's seeking clarity and accountability in the use of force during the incident that happened Oct. 21 at the Starbucks on Cedar Bluff Road.
"If the Knox County Sheriff's Office wants to be transparent in its operations, there's no need for them to delay it," McKenzie told Knox News.
"This to me, is a simple thing. If it exonerates the officers, fine, but if it shows any type of malfeasance, I'm expecting Sheriff (Tom) Spangler to take swift and immediate action."
Deputies Wyatt Brown and Travis Field provided reports about the incident at the Starbucks on Cedar Bluff Road that were sparse, contradictory and filled with descriptions that set off alarm bells among policing watchdogs. They responded to a domestic assault call involving a man and woman at the coffee shop. Deputies' accounts of what happened when Nahshon Bain-Greenidge approached them outside to ask what was going on included discrepancies.
Brown reported that Bain-Greenidge obstructed their investigation and formed a fist, leading to a physical altercation. In contrast, Field reported they intervened when Bain-Greenidge grabbed the door push bar.
During the arrest, Bain-Greenidge kicked Field in the knee as deputies took him to the ground, both reported. He was taken to the hospital for treatment of his injuries, and charged with resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and assault on a first responder.
Knox County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Kimberly Glenn declined to answer questions about the arrest, telling Knox News last week, "It looks like this is still open in court. Therefore, we won't be able to answer questions or make comments until the incident has been adjudicated."
Despite the charges, Bain-Greenidge was released on his own recognizance after he was treated at the hospital. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 21 on the three misdemeanor charges.
"From all appearances, this is an egregious violation of this young man’s civil rights," McKenzie said in a written statement.
"The Sheriff’s department should make that video public immediately. If there is no video, we need an explanation as to why - from my days on the county commission, I know that the sheriff’s department was an early adopter of using body cameras. So, I have to wonder why a month after the incident, we still haven’t seen the video."
Melba Pearson, a civil rights and criminal justice expert at Florida International University, told Knox News the deputies' reports use typical language designed to protect police after they make a violent arrest.
Vague "resisting arrest" charges especially are used by departments across the country to defend themselves against harsh, punitive and unlawful police actions, Pearson said.
Often the arrestee is charged specifically to silence them and coerce them into accepting plea deals so police behavior isn't recounted in public forums like trials, she said.
Bain-Greenidge isn’t giving his account of the arrest, and that’s no surprise, Pearson told Knox News. He has nothing to gain and much more to lose by going on the record.
McKenzie drew a contrast between the response of other police agencies and the sheriff's office.
"When the brutal beating of (Tyre) Nichols in Memphis occurred, law enforcement officials made the release of the video a priority. So why is it being kept from us in this instance," McKenzie said. "If this young man’s rights have been violated we need to know and appropriate steps need to be taken by the sheriff. The public deserves to know the details.”
Correction: An earlier version of this article misspelled Nahshon Bain-Greenidge's name. We regret the error.
Angela Dennis is the Knox News race, justice and equity reporter. Email angela.dennis@knoxnews.com. Twitter @AngeladWrites. Instagram @angeladenniswrites. Facebook at Angela Dennis Journalist.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Rep. Sam McKenzie calls for body camera footage of Starbucks arrest
