WYNNE, Ark. – A 20-year-old man was tased and arrested by police in Wynne, and it was all captured on camera.
The video, streamed live by a friend, has now gone viral, leading to questions.
Learned that it all happed over an ID.
D’Tarrious Smith said that he and his friend Alonzo Holmes were walking home from the store Monday afternoon when they noticed they were being followed by a Wynne Police cruiser.
They then decided to take a shortcut through the Crosswynne Apartments. That was when an officer approached the men but Smith said the officer made a critical mistake by calling him by the wrong name. “He called me D’Marrious,” he said.
He continued: “He pulled in and there was a Charger behind him. He pulled in, hopped out of the car and said, ‘Let me talk to you.’ I said, ‘For what?’ He said, ‘You need to identify yourself.'”
The live video shows a heavy police presence surrounding the men.
Smith said that he was on the phone with his uncle during the incident.
“Stop walking away. What’s your name?” an officer is heard saying. “Stop walking away.”
That was when a police officer pointed to a sign that read “No Loitering. Police Enforced.” But Smith refused and continued talking on the phone with his uncle.
“You going have to identify yourself. That’s required by law,” the officer is heard saying in the video. “That’s required by law. If you don’t want to do that, we’ll take you to jail. Do you understand that?”
Again, Smith did not give the officer his ID.
“What’s your address?” an officer is heard saying.
“Not yours,” Smith responded.
In the video, officers tell Smith they have reasonable suspicion him of loitering. But Smith said that they were just passing by to get home.
The video then shows Smith being taken down and tased.
“Understand the laws of the state that you travel through or gonna visit because they are different,” Cobb said. “If he was in Memphis or in Tennessee, absolutely that would have applied. But where he was, that did not apply.”
The former sheriff captain continued: “The video looked like they were fishing to me. It was an overkill with the number of officers out there.”
Smith, 20, is facing charges that include resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. He posted bond Wednesday.
He is scheduled to appear in court May 2.
Via FOX13 MEMPHIS