Black Teen Girl Handcuffed at Texas Pool Party While Clad in Bikini Speaks Out [Video]
The bikini-clad teenager is speaking out after she was wrestled down to the ground by a Texas police officer wielding his gun at two other teens that tried to help her.
A video that has since gone viral, records a white male cop arresting a black teenage girl. It began on Friday around 7:15 p.m. at the Craig Ranch North community pool when residents called 911 to report that some of the teens attending a pool party were fighting and disturbing the peace.
According to the McKinney Police Department, police were called to respond to a "disturbance involving multiple juveniles at the location, who do not live in the area or have permission to be there, refusing to leave," reads a statement that was posted on its Facebook page.
"First responding officers encountered a large crowd that refused to comply with police commands. Nine additional units responded to the scene. Officers were eventually able to gain control of the situation," police said.
However, witnesses said the commotion started when a mother and a teen girl began fighting.
"A fight between a mom and a girl broke out and when the cops showed up everyone ran, including the people who didn't do anything," Brandon Brooks, who uploaded the video online, wrote on YouTube. "So the cops just started putting everyone on the ground and in handcuffs for no reason. This kind of force is uncalled for especially on children and innocent bystanders."
In the video, McKinney police corporal Eric Casebolt is seen running towards a group of distressed teens. He can be heard yelling, cursing and demanding the teens get on the ground. He also arrested teens who described themselves as bystanders.
At one point in the video, the cop is seen aggressively throwing a 15-year-old girl clad in only a bikini to the ground, before shoving her face into the grass. She then began calling out for her mother. However, when two teen boys tried to come to her aid, the cop pulled out his firearm to scare them away. He then placed both of his knees on her back.
The girl, who has been identified as Dajerria Becton, was eventually released to her family.
"He grabbed me, twisted my arm on my back and shoved me in the grass and started pulling the back of my braids," Becton told Fox 4 News. "I was telling him to get off me because my back was hurting bad."
Her aunt is also speaking out about the way the cop handled her niece.
"It wasn't right, I think his force was excessive," she said.
"Him getting fired is not enough," Becton added.
The student who organized the pool party and lives in the subdivision said she had invited her friends to her end-of-school party. However, she said that a group of white women started yelling racial slurs at her friends and told them to "go back to their SECTION 8 HOUSING."
In response, Grace Stone, a white 14-year-old, told BuzzFeed News that when she and her friends objected to the racist comments about public housing, one of the adult women became violent.
Following the incident, McKinney Police Chief Greg Conley held a press conference Sunday, promising to commit to a complete and thorough investigation. In the interim, Casebolt has been place on administrative leave.
"Having seen the YouTube video I am disturbed and concerned by the incident and actions depicted in the video. Our expectation as a City Council is that our police department and other departments will act professionally and with appropriate restraint relative to the situation they are faced with," said McKinney's Mayor, Brian Loughmiller, in a statement.
Watch a video recording of the pool party incident along with Dajerria Becton's interview below.
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