In what is sadly another example of inarguablepolice brutality and further proof that police reform on a national level is an absolute necessity, an NYPD officer was filmed tackling a a 22-year-old skateboarder before pepper-spraying and choking him. Yibin Mu, the skateboarder in question, gave a detailed account of what exactly transpired:
"Without warning, the police officer used one hand grab my forearm and the other hand to grab the back of my neck. He then put me in a chokehold and this is what happened next. I was non-aggressive the entire time."
As you might have guessed, the NYPD disputes Mu’s account of the arrest, arguing that he "refused to sit down" so the officer could write and issue a summons. The arresting officer also claims that Mu tried to resist arrest by fighting, adding in the report that Mu intentionally "ignored him." Mu was ultimately charged with resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, failure to comply with a posted sign, and defacing park property. According to Gothamist, no injuries were cited on the report despite the fact that the officer can clearly be seen in the video using pepper spray.
Legislation was recently proposed by the City Council that would explicitly make such chokehold moves illegal, though many police officers bafflingly oppose this move. Mu's incident is currently under "internal investigation," with Mu currently refusing requests for comment.
