A black student at the University of Virginia sustained a bloody head injury and required 10 stitches after being arrested Wednesday morning by police. Apparently the incident began when Martese Johnson attempted to use a fake ID. An email penned by "Concerned Black Students" says the arrest was unprovoked and included a photo (above) of Martese Johnson covered in blood on the ground while surrounded by police.
An excerpt from the email:
"Outside the doors of Trinity Irish Pub, a mass of University students bore witness to the officer's animalistic, insensitive, and brute handling of Martese. He was left with blood splattered on the pavement of University Avenue.
"Today, we are reminded of the gruesome reality that we are not immune to injustice; as University students, we are not impervious to the brutality that has reeled on news cycles around the country. We have marched and shouted that we are Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, but the proximity of this morning's brutality to a member of this community has deepened that wound. It is no longer happening only on national television--it is a reality here and now at the Unviersity of Virginia that we must face as a collective."
Bryan Beaubrun, a fellow Virginia student, told The Cavalier Daily:
"Martese was talking to the bouncer and there was some discrepancy about his ID. [An] ABC officer approaches Martese and grabs him by the elbow…and pulls him to the side.It happened so quickly. “Out of nowhere I saw the two officers wrestling Martese to the ground. I was shocked that it escalated that quickly. Eventually [he was] on the ground, they’re trying to put handcuffs on him and their knees were on his back."
Police say Johnson was "was very agitated and belligerent." He's been charged with resisting arrest, obstructing justice without threats of force, and profane swearing or intoxication in public.
The University of Virginia has yet to release a statement.
Update 3/18/15 (5:33 p.m.): The Cavalier Daily has obtained video from the arrest. Johnson can be heard screaming: "I go to UVA! I go to UVA! I go to UVA! You fucking racists. What the fuck! How did this happen?!"
