Footage shows an Oklahoma police officer throwing a 70-year-old man to the ground after a traffic ticket

Oklahoma City — Oklahoma Police Officer under investigation after recently released body camera footage of him throwing a 70-year-old man to the ground during an argument over a traffic ticket.

The This is reported by the Oklahoma City Police Department Leech Wu was hospitalized after the October 27 incident with “serious injuries.” Thuan Nguyen, president-elect of the Vietnamese American Community of Oklahoma, told USA TODAY on Tuesday that he visited Vu in the hospital last week, and he was on a feeding tube after suffering a brain hemorrhage and neck injury.

“In our community, we want to make sure that we see justice in making sure these things don’t happen to another person,” Nguyen said.

The police department said it is conducting an internal investigation and that Officer Joseph Gibson has been placed on administrative leave. Findings will be presented to the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office after the investigation is complete.

“The Oklahoma City Police Department is committed to transparency and accountability,” the agency said in a statement. statement. “We want our community to know that this case is being thoroughly investigated and the review process will take time. We ask for your patience as we work to complete this investigation.”

The incident in the Oklahoma state capital has sparked calls from community leaders for accountability as the nation nears the end of what could be a record year for police killings, reports say Mapping Police Violence. Human rights defenders have documented excessive police force in the country for many years, and the data show The US is far ahead of other wealthy countries in terms of law enforcement violence.

A newly released video sheds light on the October 27 incident

The incident in Oklahoma City began with a minor car collision involving Wu and another driver.

Body camera video released Friday opens with Wu sitting in the driver’s seat of his parked car with the door open, with Gibson standing in front of him in a sunny parking lot. The officer said Wu made the wrong turn and told him to sign the report, noting it was not an admission of guilt.

The footage then shows Woo telling the officer he won’t sign the ticket. Wu got out of the car and pointed to the road to explain the accident. Then a woman appeared on the body camera video and stood next to Wu.

Gibson is heard telling Woo that he will be put in jail if he doesn’t sign the ticket.

“I’m ready to go to jail,” Wu replied as they stood in the parking lot.

“Are you ready to go to jail?” – said Gibson. “Ridiculously. good. It also involves confiscation of your car.’

Gibson pulled over to speak to the other driver involved in the crash and issued her a ticket. When he returned to Wu, they continued to argue about the quote. Wu appeared to tap Gibson on the chest with the back of his hand.

“You shut up,” Wu said.

Gibson quickly grabbed Wu’s arm and twisted it before throwing him to the pavement and saying, “Get on the ground.”

Wu remains motionless for the rest of the video. The woman leans into Wu’s face and says, “I need an ambulance.”

Gibson replied, “Yeah, I’ll call 911,” as he handcuffed Wu. The frame ends after a few seconds. Police said the handcuffs were removed after 911 was called.

The Oklahoma City Police Department did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s request for comment on Tuesday.

Leaders of the American Vietnamese community are calling for justice

While Nguyen said the community experiences “implicit bias” in encounters with police, it usually doesn’t escalate to the “violent outcome” that led to Vu’s hospitalization.

Nguyen said he and other Vietnamese-American community leaders met with the Oklahoma City police chief on Thursday, and the police department released the body-worn camera footage the next day.

“We want to work with our officials,” Nguyen said.

In addition to possible prejudice, Nguyen said language barriers can hinder communication with law enforcement. Looking ahead, he said the community wants to hold police accountable for the incident, provide community training on how to interact with law enforcement and make sure people know their rights.

Report: Police use force against 300,000 people a year

Organization Mapping Police Violence evaluations that law enforcement officers in the US use force against at least 300,000 people each year, and about 30% are reported to be injured as a result. The group noted that most of the people police use force against are accused of non-violent crimes.

The group has been tracking police killings since 2013 the number of dead has reached a record level last year for 1247 deaths. According to Mapping Police Violence, the majority of police killings began with traffic stops, mental health checks, disorderly conduct, non-violent offenses or when no crime was charged.

This year, according to the group, it was done by law enforcement officers 1045 people died throughout the country.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: An Oklahoma police officer tackled a 70-year-old man to the ground after issuing a fine