Phoenix Cops Repeatedly Punch, Taser Deaf Black Man w/Cerebral Palsy. Liberal Prosecutors Still Press Charges Though He Committed No Crime. DOJ Considers Oversight of Racist Police Department

From [HERE] A Black man, who is deaf and has cerebral palsy is facing felony aggravated assault and resisting arrest charges after he was repeatedly punched and tasered by a pair of Phoenix police officers.

The violent and rapid arrest of Tyron McAlpin raises serious questions and could serve as a test case for Phoenix and the Department of Justice as the two battle over whether the police department in America’s fifth-largest city needs federal oversight.

Acting on false claims from a white man under investigation, body camera video shows officers unexpectedly go after McAlpin, punch him in the head at least 10 times, Taser him four times, and wrap their arms around his neck.

“It’s hard for me to see how the city can come out and say with [a] straight face that it is meeting the DOJ report head-on when this man is being charged with assault on police officers for this incident,” said Jesse Showalter, one of McAlpin's attorneys.

But, Phoenix police and Maricopa County prosecutors continue to pursue a criminal case against McAlpin. During a recent preliminary hearing, Maricopa County Superior Court Commissioner Nick Saccone found there was probable cause for his August 19, 2024, arrest.

McAlpin was arrested by Officers Benjamin Harris and Kyle Sue.

In their police reports and court testimony, the two officers stated McAlpin was going to run, took a fighting stance, threw repeated punches, and wouldn’t comply with commands.

McAlpin's attorneys said body camera video and surveillance footage show the officers’ claims are false and said there’s an obvious explanation for why he couldn’t comply.

“The answer is easy. He’s deaf. He couldn’t understand what they were doing. And he had done nothing wrong,” Showalter said. “Everything I see in that video is Tyron just trying to avoid being harmed by these officers and that only makes them increase the escalation and the violence that they’re using.”

Among the problems cited by the DOJ, the following issues are also raised in McAlpin's arrest: Racial bias, excessive force, dangerous use of Tasers and chokeholds, and violating the rights of people with disabilities.

The violent arrest stems from a morning call from Circle K employees who reported that a White man was causing problems and wouldn’t leave the store, records show.

While being trespassed, the man claimed he was assaulted by a Black man and pointed across the street at McAlpin.

Officers Harris and Sue took the man’s claims at face value and left him to go after McAlpin. (The man’s assault claim was later refuted by store employees and surveillance video, records show.) 

After handcuffing McAlpin, his girlfriend arrived at the arrest and told the officers that he was deaf and had cerebral palsy, according to body camera footage. None of the officers at the scene included any information about McAplin’s disabilities in their reports.