Bodycam footage shows deaf, disabled man punched by Phoenix police

PHOENIX (TNND) — Newly released body camera footage showing two Phoenix police officers yelling and punching a black man reportedly deaf and suffering from cerebral palsy has sparked outrage among civil rights and disability activists.

Video released by an attorney shows Tyron McAlpin, 34, being subpoenaed by police and beaten while lying face down on the ground.

Police said in a report obtained by CNN that they were attempting to question McAlpin after a man claimed he was hit by someone trying to steal his bike. When the man named McAlpin as a suspect, officers followed him to a nearby parking lot.

McAlpin now faces two counts of aggravated assault and one count of resisting arrest after police say he assumed a “fighting stance” when officers approached him. On Tuesday, the Maricopa District Attorney’s Office told media that the original theft charges had been dropped.

The Phoenix Police Department told CNN the officers were not placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation.

“This incident is the subject of an ongoing internal investigation and was referred to the Office of Professional Standards on August 30, 2024,” police told the National News Desk in a statement.

Bodycam footage shows one of the officers telling McAlpin to “stop where you are” and “sit down” before immediately grabbing him and a fight breaking out.

His hands raised to deliver targeted punches to my face/head, and multiple strikes with closed fists to my head,” one of the officers wrote in the incident report.

The video continues to show McAlpin on the ground as officers yell at him to put his hands behind his back and tackle him repeatedly.

Shortly after the altercation, a woman identifying herself as his wife came to the scene and told police that her husband was disabled.

“You’re making fun of him for no reason,” she says in the video.

After the police ask him about his disability, she says he is deaf and has cerebral palsy.

“I talk to him on the phone from Circle K,” she adds before police ask how she spoke to him at home if he is deaf.

“Because I spoke sign language, that’s why I signed to him,” she replied.

The police report says McAlpin was then taken to the hospital by ambulance “as a precaution.”

The Arizona NAACP condemned the assault and called for the officers to be placed on administrative leave until a full investigation into their conduct is completed.

“This brutal assault was due to the false claims of a white citizen, reminiscent of many of the lies like Emmit Till that cost the lives of black citizens in America,” said the State Conference vice president. Arizona (NAACP) Andre Miller said in a statement: “Tyron was not a suspect in an actual crime, he had done nothing wrong and he also has communication issues. His attack took place seconds after the police vehicle was parked. No real communication was present in this meeting.

McAlpin pleaded not guilty and spent 24 days in jail before posting bond, CBS News reported.

The Arizona Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing said it was “deeply disheartened by the unjustified incident that occurred during a law enforcement interaction with a Black, Deaf, and disabled person whose language is l ‘ASL’.

In June, the Department of Justice released a report stating that the Phoenix Police Department and the City of Phoenix “engaged in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law.”

It specifically describes the use of excessive force, unlawful detention or arrest of homeless people, and discrimination against Blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans during law enforcement.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said the report was “an important step toward accountability and transparency.”

The National News Desk reached out to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for comment and has not yet received a response.

An initial pretrial conference for McAlpin is scheduled for Nov. 13 and a trial for late February.