Police chief goes to war with media over claim cops tasered unarmed autistic man
A police chief has attacked the media over claims that his officers tasered an unarmed autistic man.
Local media in Florida had released a news report over the police officers using a stun gun on the autistic suspect, claiming he had been unarmed.
But police instead suggested that the man was armed with a 12-inch long blade, and released dashcam footage of the incident.
Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey has since come up with attacks against the local press in multiple channels and with strong-worded statements criticising the journalists' work.
The row started when officers responded to reports of a man standing outside with a knife. During an interaction with the suspect, the officers tased him and he fell to the ground.
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Deputies tased Jaquez Johnson, who was reportedly holding what the sheriff said was a knife (@BrevardCountySheriff/Newsflash)The man was identified as Jaquez Johnson, who is autistic and living with mental health problems.
Ivey shared a video online attacking the media, and even warned local news outlet Florida Today that he was going to give it "both barrels" if it tried to criticise his officers.
In the dashcam footage released by the police, Johnson appeared to be holding - what police claimed was - a 12-inch long blade. They can be heard repeatedly telling him to "drop the knife".
Eventually, one of the officers could be seen firing a taser out of shot, with Johnson reportedly falling to the ground as the dashcam footage ended.
Ivey claimed he "could not be more proud" of his deputies, insisting they "did it exactly right", adding: "They followed their training and their protocol."
In a statement released on Tuesday, January 10, he said (sic): "ATTACK ME ALL YOU WANT BUT WHEN YOU ATTACK MY DEPUTIES I AM GOING TO GIVE IT BACK TO YOU WITH BOTH BARRELS!!"
The sheriff stated: "It's time for the 'Truth To Be Told' as I am sick and tired of the Florida Today manipulating and slanting stories in an effort to make our Deputies look unprofessional."
Deputies said they approached Johnson after getting reports of a man with a knife (@BrevardCountySheriff/Newsflash)However, in an initial report, the sheriff's office stated that no weapon was found at the scene, FOX 35 reported.
The office specifically stated that deputies weren’t able to locate a knife at the scene while a crowd was forming. They also failed to find a knife on Johnson after he was tasered.
Johnson's mother, Tiffany Johnson, said she filed a complaint with the sheriff’s office.
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She also said her son is a kind man who everyone knows in the neighbourhood, adding that the taser was unnecessary.
Tiffany Johnson added: "He's afraid of the police officers now. When he sees a patrol car he just goes in his room and stays there until they're gone."
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