Tyron McAlpin: Bodycam video shows Phoenix police hitting, tasing deaf man

CNN
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Newly released body camera footage shows two Phoenix police officers shouting orders at a black man as he lies face down on the ground – with one officer punching him repeatedly and another tackling him.

Tyron McAlpin, 34, is deaf and no longer charged in an alleged crime that prompted officers to physically confront him in a parking lot on the morning of August 19. The Maricopa County District Attorney’s Office has decided to drop an initial theft charge against him, the office told CNN on Tuesday.

But McAlpin now faces two counts of aggravated assault and one count of resisting arrest after Phoenix police say he took a “fighting stance” when he was first approached by an officer.

Police were attempting to question McAlpin after a man reported being hit by someone who was trying to steal his bike, according to an incident report. The man directed police toward McAlpin, and officers followed him to a nearby parking lot.

As McAlpin walks through the parking lot, a police officer calls out to the deaf man from his squad car, body camera footage shows.

“Hey buddy, stop where you are,” the officer said. “Sit down.”

The police officer then gets out of his car and a few seconds later, a fight ensues.

“His hands raised to deliver targeted punches to my face/head, and multiple strikes with closed fists to my head,” the first officer who confronted McAlpin wrote in an incident report.

Surveillance footage from a nearby business shows the police car heading toward McAlpin. Within seconds, a police officer got out of the car and rushed toward McAlpin.

Body camera footage shows the officer was the first to extend his arms toward McAlpin while McAlpin’s arms remained at his sides.

Almost instantly, McAlpin raises his arms and appears to have his legs in a fighting or defensive stance.

Less than a second later, the officer and McAlpin became involved in a fight.

A second officer comes to help pin McAlpin to the ground, face down. But McAlpin’s right hand is still in front of his body.

“Put your hands behind your back!” shouts the first officer to the deaf man. “Hands behind your back now!”

When McAlpin did not obey and raised his head slightly, the other officer punched him in the head.

A police officer attacks McAlpin several times before he is handcuffed and taken away. At one point, the officers describe their injuries from the confrontation:

“I think I broke my hand,” the first officer said. “Did he bite you?”

“Yeah,” the second officer replied.

Shortly after, a woman arrived on the scene, identifying herself as McAlpin’s wife, body camera footage shows.

“He’s my husband. He was on the phone with me,” said the woman, later identified in a police incident report as Jessica Ulaszek.

“Well, he’s under arrest for assaulting a police officer,” a police officer told him. “He assaulted someone at Circle K. If you can wait there, I’ll tell you about it in a moment.”

Ulaszek told police that her husband is disabled and that the two communicated on the phone via sign language.

“He is deaf and has cerebral palsy. And I’m on the phone with him from Circle K,” Ulaszek said.

“I was on the phone with him the whole time. He didn’t attack anyone.

The two officers have not been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation and are actively working, Phoenix police told CNN Tuesday.

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

Criticism of the officers’ behavior prompted charges against McAlpin to be dropped.

The public outcry prompted Maricopa County’s top prosecutor to personally review the case.

“Some members of our community have expressed concerns regarding the accusations against Tyron McAlpin. I have great confidence in the attorneys who work at MCAO and those who have reviewed this case thus far,” Maricopa County Prosecutor Rachel Mitchell said in a statement released Tuesday to CNN.

“I also respect those who have raised their concerns. Due to the attention this case has received, I will personally review the entire record, as well as the entire video. I may or may not come to a different conclusion, but I think this matter deserves further examination.

Earlier this year, a Justice Department report said the Phoenix Police Department violated the constitutional rights of homeless people and disproportionately enforced laws against minorities, including those with behavioral disorders, CNN reported.

As for why McAlpin didn’t follow the officers’ orders, “the answer is simple:
He’s deaf,” McAlpin’s attorney, Jesse Showalter, told CNN affiliate KNXV.

“He couldn’t understand what they were doing,” Showalter said. “All I see in this video is Tyron just trying to avoid getting hurt by these officers, which only incentivizes them to escalate and escalate the violence they use.”

At a preliminary hearing in McAlpin’s case, the two officers involved in the fight said they didn’t remember much training on how to handle hearing-impaired subjects, KNXV reported.

“That was about seven years ago. I don’t really remember it,” the first officer testified.

“Have you received training to deal with disabled members of the public?” » McAlpin’s lawyer asked the second officer.

“Maybe briefly, but nothing that I remember,” he replied.

CNN has reached out to the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association for comment. In a statement to KNXV, the police union urged the public not to jump to conclusions.

“We support our officers and caution the community against making judgments about the incident until all of the evidence is reviewed rather than a snippet of body camera footage,” the union said .

McAlpin’s first pretrial conference is scheduled for Nov. 13, and his trial is scheduled for late February.

CNN’s Josh Campbell contributed to this report.