Caught On Video: Officers Beat On Unruly Pursuit Suspect In Pasadena

A high-speed auto chase in California ended up with a police officer caught on tape brutally beating an unarmed Black man at the conclusion of the pursuit.

San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies on Thursday, October 15 chased a trio of suspects in a auto to Pasadena, where the vehicle crashed and its occupants were taken into custody.

The deputy threw at least 15 punches and kneed the suspect – identified by the L.A. Times as 25-year-old Donovan Gardner – in the head two times, said KTLA.

The chase proceeded westbound on the 210 Freeway, moving at high speeds, according to Officer Monica Posada with the California Highway Patrol, which assisted the Sheriff’s Department. A vehicle from one law enforcement agency was seen crashing into a tree mid-pursuit, and two men were seen exiting the vehicle on a residential street. Throughout all of the this, the man seemed to be conscious and continued to move.

According to police, the suspects were originally wanted for committing a burglary in San Bernardino County.

Officers used force in at least one of the arrests. A third deputy eventually approaches, and the man is rolled over and restrained.

By 11:45, the man was placed on a stretcher by firefighters, KTLA reported.

Geoffrey Alpert, a University of South Carolina professor of criminology who has studied use of force and pursuits called the encounter “an example of what happens to officers when they’re so angry at the suspect and they lose perspective, and get what we call an adrenaline dump”.

Another person, whose gender was not clear from the video, remained in the auto after the two men ran away.