“They’re hurting my son!” a woman cries out in a disturbing video that’s stirring debate across social media.
The clip shows several NYPD officers ripping the baby from the arms of a mother inside a social services office. Authorities were called to the scene after 23-year-old Jazmine Headley sat on the floor of the crowded office and refused to stand after security informed her that she was blocking a hallway.
When law officials arrived, all hell broke loose.
As reported by rawstory.com, Headley is seen on the video lying on the floor and cradling her son as four officers — three of them women — surround her.
“They’re hurting my son! They’re hurting my son!” she shouts. One of the female officers yanks the baby from her then waves as stun gun at shocked onlookers.
The police department called the Friday incident “troubling,” and noted that Headley had refused to leave and was endangering her child, who was later placed in the care of a relative, the report states.
She was hit with numerous charges, including resisting arrest, child endangerment, obstruction, and trespassing. As of Sunday, Headley remained jailed at Rikers Island, where she is being held without bond.
All the officers involved reportedly remain on full-duty status.
—Kareem Hunt reportedly begins anger management counseling—
Nyashia Ferguson the woman who recorded the incident and posted the video on social media said the police presence only made the situation worse.
“They’re always rude,” Ferguson told the New York Times. “They think that people that are poor don’t have nothing, so you can treat them any kind of way.”
“Being poor is not a crime,” said Letitia James, the city’s city’s public advocate, and state’s attorney general-elect. “No mother should have to experience the trauma and humiliation we all witnessed in this video.”
Video from CBS via YouTube