Video of violent arrests by Syracuse Police officers generating community anger

SYRACUSE, N.Y — Video of violent arrests by Syracuse Police officers is generating anger in the community as it spreads quickly on social media. As of Wednesday evening, the manner in which police detained two men is under investigation internally at the Police Department.

Witnesses say it happened Wednesday afternoon around 4:30 p.m. on South Avenue. The video shows officers talking to two men on the sidewalk. One officer is seen taking one of the men to the ground and put him in handcuffs. Then another officer is seen punching the other man in the head, and cuffing him. A review of the video shows seven officers on the scene.

Syracuse Police say this use of force incident is being “thoroughly investigated with a multi-level system of review.” The department’s use of force policy allows for “reasonable force” to take a person into custody. It generally prohibits force against people who are handcuffed – which was not the case in this video. Police have not revealed what led up to this encounter or what if any charges the men face.