Denver, CO – Video is surfacing of a Denver officer detaining a teenager and assaulting him. Malow Mayek was 17 when he was walking home and singing to himself.
Police were called by someone who found his mannerisms “scary”. When police showed up to question Mayek, the ordered him to stop. Mayek, not needing to respond – due to not having committed any sort of crime, was then detained and shown excessive force.
The video showcases the event – which occurred in 2018. In the video, you can see the Denver officer using excessive force against Mayek.
The city is under fire with the justice system at a time when police reform is a big factor in how we treat ourselves.
Mr. Mayek was doing nothing wrong,” Lane points out. “There was no crime he was accused of committing. There was no anything, and unless the police have a reasonable suspicion that you’ve committed a crime, you’re allowed to ignore them and just walk away. So when he refused to obey them, the officers had no legal justification to lay a finger on him.”
Some reports are coming through stating that Mayek was on LSD – a psychoactive substance. Unfortunately, these issues came up after he was beaten.
Mr. Mayek was on LSD โ not a good thing โ and he was out of his mind. He was sort of dancing down the street, tripping and thinking he was the Lord God almighty, yelling things. And the cops got involved. They were ordering him, ‘Stop, stop,’ but he was on LSD, and he continued to dance and carry on. So they decided, ‘When you’re not doing what we told you to do, we’re going to break your bones and electrocute you’ โ and that’s what happened. Officer Rodarte broke Mr. Mayek’s leg, broke his orbital bone and broke his nose, all because Mayek wouldn’t do what he told him to do.”
The video is surfacing at a time when police brutality is sweeping the nation. In cities like Seattle, protesters are working with local officials to put an end to mass incarceration and the treatment of POC throughout the country.
You can watch the video here: