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Looks like we need to add not leaving your car running while you make a quick purchase is now something we have to add to our “ish Black folks can’t do” thanks to a video coming out of Sacramento.
According to the Sacramento Bee, Craig Williams was said to be inside the South Land Park convenience store and left his car idling outside. When Williams returned to his car, he was confronted by a police officer, who shut off the ignition and told him he was violating several laws including having loud music playing.
—Meghan Markle devastated dad pulled out of wedding and faked humiliating photos—
Williams’ girlfriend started recording the interaction with a cellphone. The officer grabbed Williams’ arm and pushed him into the wall at the store and then pushed him to the ground. Williams can be heard saying: “I give up, I give up,” while trying to position his arms so the officer could arrest him.
Williams was arrested on suspicion of resisting arrest and leaving the ignition key in an unattended vehicle. He was later released.
Justin Ward, Williams’ lawyer, told reporters that his client didn’t believe the idling ordinance was legit.
The city code was enacted to support a national campaign by the U.S. Department of Justice to curb auto thefts, a September 1967 article in The Sacramento Bee reported.
The Sacramento police is already under fire following the shooting death of unarmed Stephon Clark who was gunned down by officers in the backyard of his grandmother’s home while holding a cellphone.
—#FlyingWhileBlack: Actress blasts white woman for asking her clean up her mess on airplane—
The Sacramento NAACP claims that Williams should not have been arrested at all.
The District Attorney’s Office has opted to drop the charges “in the interests of justice,” according to the media release.
