Brutal Arrest Video Of Teenage Black Girl Being Choked, Manhandled By Cops Goes Viral

A young Black teenage girl who found herself being harassed and thrown around as she was arrested by California police officers is now the subject of a department investigation on Tuesday, Feb. 15, after a video of the incident went viral.

The 16-year-old girl, who has not been identified publicly as of press time, was seen being manhandled by police officers before being thrown to the ground as she resisted arrested. One of the officers then put his hand on the young girl’s throat while pinning the girl with his knees, The Daily Beast reported.

“Did you just try to fight me?” he said to the girl repeatedly, as she continually screamed for his brother to help.

The video had gone viral on social media, and the Rialto Police Department found themselves apologizing to the girl for the choking part of the incident, while they continued to attempt to justify the rest of the incident as a consequence of resisting arrest, according to KTLA.

“Because officers could not prove her identity, or release the juvenile to her parents with a citation to appear in juvenile court, she was arrested,” a statement from the police said, justifying the arrest.

“We apologize to the juvenile’s family regarding these unfortunate circumstances,” Rialto Police Chief Mark Kling said. “At a time when our police department strives to build community relationships, we certainly fell short in this encounter. We look forward to building rapport with this family now and in the future.”

The officer who was responsible for the incident has been put on paid administrative leave as the police continue to investigate the incident further to find any wrongdoing.

“I have requested an independent investigation by the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigations to determine if the officer’s use of force options were lawful,” Rialto Police Department spokesperson Adán Ortega said.

“If you choke a child you should be relieved of duty right now and I’m speaking directly to supervisors,” Caree Harper, the family’s lawyer, said in response to the statement. “Fire him now, send a message. Let them learn now so that other children don’t have to be punished later.”