While the world was focused on the president's airstrike in Syria, the mother of all bombs and United Airlines' total lack of human decency, people across the country were silently falling victim to police violence.
Almost 300 people have been killed at the hands of police officers in 2017. And in the past week alone, at least three separate instances of police brutality — in California, Georgia and Ohio — were reported.
On Monday in Sacramento, California, a cop violently slammed a black man to the ground. The video shows an officer approaching the man, later identified as Nandi Cain Jr., in the middle of an empty street. They speak briefly before the officer throws Cain to the ground and then punches him in the head.
The officer originally said that he had "attempted to detain a pedestrian for allegedly unlawfully crossing the street," after which Cain had questioned the officer's authority to detain him. That, the officer said, was what sparked his violent reaction.
Cain was originally charged with resisting arrest, but the charge was later dropped and he was released. The Sacramento Internal Affairs Division is investigating the incident, and the officer is currently on paid administrative leave.
Across the country in Georgia, two police officers were fired after two separate videos surfaced of them assaulting a driver during a routine traffic stop. The video shows the driver, identified as Demetrius Bryan Hollins, getting out of his car with his hands up. Officer Michael Bongiovanni throws him to the ground while the second officer, Robert McDonald, rushes over. McDonald then kicks Hollins in the face.
Hollins was brought in and charged with driving with a suspended license, as well as possessing less than an ounce of marijuana. He was released on bond, and the two officers who assaulted him were fired.
In Ohio, a video of a police officer repeatedly stomping on a man's head raised some eyebrows. It shows Demarco Anderson lying on the ground, already handcuffed and subdued, while officer Zachary Rosen slams his foot into the back of Anderson's head. Rosen continues to assault the man by kneeling on his neck after kicking him. The worst part: Four other police officers can be seen standing idly by.
“Officer Zachary Rosen is under investigation for his actions that took place involving a suspect under arrest on Saturday, April 8, 2017," a statement from the Columbus Police Department said. "Officer Rosen has been reassigned to a non-patrol duty indefinitely.”
The statement did not mention the status of Demarco Anderson or of the four other cops.
Rosen is the same officer who the Supreme Court declined to criminally charge with the death of Henry Green last year.
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