Body camera footage shows Phoenix officers punch, shock deaf man with Taser

PHOENIX — Two Arizona police officers are under national scrutiny after newly released body camera footage showed them repeatedly punching and shocking a deaf Black man with a Taser nearly two months ago.

Tyron McAlpin, 34, was punched and shocked with a Taser by Phoenix police officers Benjamin Harris and Kyle Sue in August, newly released video showed. McAlpin has pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated assault and resisting arrest.

Body camera footage of the Aug. 19 arrest outside a Circle K was released on Monday and has since drawn condemnations from civil rights groups such as the Arizona State Conference NAACP, which called for the officers to be placed on administrative leave until a full probe is conducted.

"Tyron was not a suspect in an actual crime, he had not done anything wrong, and he also has communication challenges," said Arizona NAACP Vice President Andre Miller. The Phoenix Police Department said the incident is the subject of an ongoing investigation and was assigned to the Professional Standards Bureau on Aug. 30.

The newly released video comes four months after the U.S. Justice Department released a scathing report that said Pheonix police officers violated people's civil and constitutional rights. The DOJ concluded officers used unlawful force, disproportionately targeted people of color, and routinely violated the rights of protesters, unhoused people, and people experiencing mental health crises.

What happened to Tyron McAlpin

On Aug. 19, Phoenix police were called to a Circle K to remove a white man from the convenience store whom the caller said had been the "aggressor in a fight," according to Harris' police incident report. Harris escorted the man out of the store, who then said he had been assaulted and pointed to McAlpin on the sidewalk, according to the report.

McAlpin has not been charged with assaulting the man.

Body camera footage later showed Harris driving toward McAlpin and saying: “Hey, buddy, stop where you’re at.” McAlpin, who is deaf, according to court records, kept walking.

Harris then pulled up next to McAlpin, opened the door, and immediately reached for him, saying: "Have a seat." After a struggle that lasted about 10 seconds, Harris and Sue brought McAlpin to the ground and repeatedly punched and shocked him with a Taser.

They also told McAlpin to put his hands behind his back, and he did not comply. As Harris instructed McAlpin to put his hands behind his back, Sue struck the back of McAlpin’s head, prompting him to raise his hands over his head for protection.

The video later showed Harris shouting more forcefully for McAlpin to comply before he began punching him with closed fists. Later, McAlpin stood up and mentioned that he believed his knuckles were broken.

As Sue continued to strike McAlpin, Harris pulled out a Taser and fired at McAlpin. In the footage, McAlpin could be heard crying out as Harris continued to shout: "Hands behind your back."

The officers are seen on the video punching McAlpin at least a dozen times and shocking him with a Taser four times.

In Harris' incident report, he said McAlpin swung punches at his head and bit Sue. At one point in the video, Harris brought his arm around McAlpin’s face. The footage shows his closed hand moving toward McAlpin’s mouth, which is already open, and appearing to pass near his teeth.

After McAlpin is handcuffed, body camera video shows a woman telling officers that McAlpin is her husband and that he is deaf and has cerebral palsy.

The officers remained on duty as of Tuesday.

McAlpin's lawyer denied wrongdoing and said his priority was to get what he called unjust charges dropped. McAlpin spent 24 days in jail before making bond, CBS News reported. He later pleaded not guilty.

Violent arrest follows scathing DOJ report

The Pheonix Police Department was recently under a national spotlight after the Justice Department published a 126-page report following a nearly three-year investigation.

Pheonix police violated the First, Fourth, and 14th Amendments, according to Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. The constitutional amendments protect free speech, prohibit unreasonable searches and seizures, and guarantee equal protection under the law.

"Our investigation revealed systemic problems within Phoenix Police Department that deprive people of their rights under the Constitution and federal law," the report read. "We found pervasive failings in Phoenix Police Department's policies, training, supervision, and accountability systems that have disguised and perpetuated these violations for years."

Phoenix City Councilmember Kevin Robinson referenced the Justice Department in a statement. He, along with Councilmember Carlos Galindo-Elvira, said they are "concerned about the contents of the video."

Robinson cited a Justice Department recommendation calling for consistent processes to investigate misconduct.

"Now is the time to prove to our residents that our City's Police Department will ensure allegations of misconduct are fully examined," Robinson said.

Contributing: Minnah Arshad, USA TODAY; Reuters