Boulder, Colorado police have fallen under scrutiny after a video of their alleged misconduct has gone viral, in cell phone footage that appears to show them brandish their weapons against a black man as he's picking up his own trash.
The incident occurred at around 8:30 a.m. last Friday (March 1), where a police officer reportedly made contact with the unidentified man to ask if he had the right to be outside the residence. From there, the man allegedly handed over his school identification while telling the officer that he lived at the residence, yet the officer decided to obtain him for further investigation.
At that point, the man became angry over the detainment and a neighbor started recording the interaction, while the officer then called for backup. The officer radioed that the man was "being uncooperative and unwilling to put down a blunt object," which has since been verified as a bucket and a metal trash grabber.
"I don't have a weapon... this is my property. I live here," the man can be heard pleading in the video, though within minutes multiple officers arrive on the scene with their guns drawn and at least one holding a shotgun.
Officers then reportedly learned that the man had a right to be there, thus they returned his ID card and left without further action being taken. Nonetheless, after the footage recorded by the neighbor went viral, a large crowd attended the Boulder City Council Meeting earlier this week with metal trash grabbers in hand.
"This is an extremely concerning issue, and one that we are taking very seriously," Boulder Police Chief Greg Testa told the city council, while it's also been reported that the initial officer who confronted the man has been placed on administrative leave.
Source: ABC
