Four Phoenix cops threaten to kill Black family in child shoplifting incident

By Mona Austin Is the Phoenix shoplifting couple deliberately looking to get paid from an ill-fated police encounter?

First the country became accustomed to law enforcement officers over-reacting in encounters that led to the deaths of  Black men, then Black women and then Black children. . .Now a situation in Phoenix, AZ shows a worsening pattern of racial profiling that criminalized an entire Black family as they faced the threat of death from a group of police officers.  This group of officers was recorded  threatening to take their lives without a proper assessment of the situation. Video footage of the encounter shows the officers acting in a manner that many deem as  too forceful for the petty crime of alleged shoplifting.

Horrifying video of  Phoenix police pulling their weapons on a family in a vehicle has gone viral, outraging many African Americans.  Dravon Ames, 22, was in the vehicle with his pregnant girlfriend Iesha Harper, 24 and their two daughters (ages 1 and 4) when several cops showed up yelling and brandishing their weapons. Police said their 4 year-old daughter stole a doll from a dollar store. Harper can be heard saying she is pregnant and unable to open the door. One officer is heard yelling, “I’m going to put a f*cking cap in your f*cking head.” An officer kicked Ames in the leg when arresting him. Guns where drawn while the small children exited the SUV. They were taken completely by surprise , never given a reason for the arrest initially Ames told AZC in an interview. They were just about to drop their daughter off to child care . Excessive force is evident throughout the video.

The couple has filed a $10 million notice of claim for discrimination (unless the city decides to settle.)  They say their treatment was not justified and they have all suffered -- some physically, all emotionally.

According to the  Phoenix New Times Ames alleged he was punched in the back after his face was slammed against a police car. The family claims their 1-year-old child suffered injuries after police attempted to yank the child out of Harper’s arms.  

“The first officer grabbed the mother and the baby around both of their necks, and tried to take the baby out of the mother’s hand,” the notice of claim states. “He told her to put the baby on the ground, which she was unwilling to do because the baby could not walk, and the ground consisted of hot pavement.” 

“The first officer pulled the baby by the arm to get her away from the mother, which injured the arm, in a condition known as ‘dead arm.’ Island [the couple’s 1-year-old child] has been having nightmares and wetting her bed, which she has not done before this incident,” the claim continues.  Harper is currently 6 months pregnant. 

 In a written statement Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego apologized to the community and said she refuses to see this type of "sick" behavior go unchallenged.  Police chief Jeri Williams also apologized to Ames and Harper. "This incident is not representative of the majority of Phoenix Police officers who serve this city," she said.

Yet, Ames told CNN the mayor doesn't seem fully apologetic about what happened and appears she wants to protect the city.  “We’ve been aware of apologies from the mayor and the chief, and, honestly, it really hasn’t done anything to help us ‘cause it feels like a half apology,” the young father said during a press conference.

Ames emphasized he was compliant during the entire encounter.The city of Phoenix has 60 days to respond. 

The incident prompted mandatory de-escalation courses and the use of body cams by the end of August.  Even though a local news source said an aunt also stole underwear they say they want to hold the police department accountable and the acting officers should be fired. The store did not press charges.

The incident occurred on May 27, but the story made national headlines when the cell phone video a bystander took was released last week.

Journalist and activist Shaun King agrees that the acting officers should be fired and released their names and badge numbers on Twitter as follows:

Here are the 4 officers, and badge numbers, that we know of so far that were on the scene of this brutal act of police violence/terrorism in Phoenix.

Christopher Meyer 06254

Nicholas Welch 09372

Agnes Milbourn 09118

Brian Herricht 09054

While the situation is a part of the unfortunate narrative of excessive force and police brutality that has claimed the lives of many Blacks, this incident is different from most in that the suspects admitted they were aware of the wrong-doing that triggered the response, were not convicted of a crime and lived to tell their story.