| Harvey Specter | 02-18-2009 12:52 AM |
Kansas City Police beat up suspect after car chase
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhT4bxCVNIw Quote:
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The two Kansas City police departments are investigating whether officers used improper force on a suspect after a high-speed chase that started on the Missouri side and ended in Kansas.
The arrest of the chase suspect Monday afternoon was recorded by a local TV station's aerial video camera. The videotape from KSHB-TV shows at least two officers repeatedly punching the man while he was face down on the ground.
The chase lasted between 20 and 30 minutes, police said.
The speeding SUV led Kansas City, Mo., officers into Kansas City, Kan., where officers there joined in the pursuit.
The man driving the vehicle and his two passengers - a man and a woman - fled from the vehicle. Moments later, the tape shows the driver trying to run away before eventually surrendering to police. When he is on the ground, at least two officers are shown punching him. The man's hands appear to be behind his head.
The driver, identified Tuesday as Dandridge Washington, 26, of Kansas City, Kan., was charged with two counts of felony eluding a police officer for the afternoon chase as well as an earlier one Monday. He is being held in the Wyandotte County jail on $50,000 bond.
Names of the other two people in the SUV were not released. It is not clear what charges they might face.
Capt. Rich Lockhart, a spokesman for the Kansas City, Mo., department, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that an officer with his department saw the SUV and believed its occupants were drunk, so he started pursuing them.
Lockhart said the officer found out during the chase that the same suspects were wanted in connection with a crime in Kansas City, Kan., and had been pursued earlier. Lockhart said he wasn't sure about the nature of that crime.
About a dozen officers were involved in the chase by the time it ended. Lockhart said he was uncertain of the vehicles' speed during the chase, but KSHB reported that it topped 100 mph.
Lockhart said the TV station brought the officers' actions to his attention, prompting the investigation. Kansas City, Mo., police also have video footage taken from a department vehicle's dash camera, Lockhart said. That footage is not being released pending the investigation.
It is not clear whether Kansas City, Kan., police have any of their own footage. A spokesman for that department declined comment.
The two police departments released a joint statement Tuesday confirming that they are investigating the incident together.
The departments said they are reviewing video footage and police reports. They want anyone who saw the incident to contact them.
Police will submit their findings to the Wyandotte County District Attorney's Office in Kansas City, Kan., for further review.
"I think you see a lot of officers who are reacting very appropriately for the situation and bringing a very dangerous situation to a safe resolution," Lockhart told the AP. "There are a couple of officers whose actions cause some concern, and we will be investigating to determine what was going on and why they reacted the way they did."
He said the departments were still working Tuesday afternoon to identify all the officers involved in the incident.
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