Police Brutality in Downtown Barrie
Earlier today, bystanders watched as a twenty-year-old man was brutally arrested in downtown Barrie. The incident was recorded and posted to social media mid-afternoon on February 4, 2021. According to the witness who recorded the video, the man was skateboarding when officers grabbed him and accused him of resisting arrest.
In the disturbing video, police are seen holding a taser to the man’s head as he repeatedly shouts at the officer to “get the fuck off me!” at one point yelling to bystanders to “please call 911!”. The officer repeatedly yells at the man to “stop resisting” and threatens him to “put your hands behind your back or I’ll light you up,” to which the man responds that he is unable to move it. The officer then bashes the taser into the man’s skull as another officer arrives, flips the man over, and rams his face into the cement while he is being handcuffed. As this happens, bystanders scream in horror.
As bystanders spoke up against the excessive force, the original police officer can be heard saying, “Do you want to go in too? [...] Yeah, get it on the news guys.”
As of 6:30pm EST, the video has 765 shares on Facebook. The comments are filled with horrified reactions by viewers who cannot understand the use of excessive force as the man continuously attempted to surrender himself. The reason for the arrest is still unknown, but bystanders attest to the fact that the man was not acting as a threat to anyone at the time of arrest.
UPDATE: The victim’s brother, Gary, said that the 20-year-old was just on his way home from his new job when the incident happened, “he was so proud of himself.” Gary continued to say, “that officer was out of control [he wasn’t] serving or protecting anyone.” Notably upset, Gary says he wants justice for his younger brother and accountability for the violence that has occurred.
UPDATE: Another bystander has anonymously come forth to provide more information. According to the witness, the twenty-year-old victim went through a red light on his skateboard and received a ticket for doing so. The man accepted the ticket and began to ride away. In turn, the officer drove his cruiser around and into traffic to cut off the rider. The rider was unable to stop in time and crashed into the side of the cruiser. The officer proceeded to exit his vehicle and yell at the man for skateboarding on the road, after which the man said he was not allowed to skate on the sidewalk and got arrested.