MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Memphis Police officers were involved in a violent arrest Sunday night, and witnesses say they went too far.
It is an exclusive you will only see here on WREG-TV. These exclusive clips show officers using force immediately upon arriving to the scene and using force with children.
Officers say they were responding to a call about a domestic issue on Wedgewood Street and less than a minute after pulling up, were already using force on the suspect.
MPD says they had been to the house two times before, and records show the suspect does have a history of domestic violence, but the woman who called police tells WREG-TV, she just asked them to remove the suspect from the property.
“I didn’t call you to beat him. It’s a simpler way,” a woman said.
Over the next few minutes, officers struggled with the man, 35-year-old Landreo Lurry, you can see in the video, they continue to punch him while he seems to be restrained. At one point, it appears that an officer has to be restrained by other officers, while another officer screams at the family involved.
Family members of the suspect and victim were detained, and MPD says two misdemeanor citations and two Juvenile Court summons were issued, but witnesses are concerned for the children on scene, after a tense interaction with law enforcement.
“My boy told me, do not call the police back to the house. If something was ever to happen, it could be a break-in, do not call them,” one witness said.
Another witness said, “I think they need more training and a little counseling. Because somebody was angry. Something happened and he brought it to work with him.”
Video from the scene clearly shows police body cameras in the yard where the altercation took place, but it’s unclear when they came off. But with a crowd of witnesses, security cameras and cell phones, the entire incident was recorded.
Two witnesses told WREG, officers on the scene wanted the videos deleted.
“These were his exact words: He said, if you delete that video off facebook, and make a status that says we were just playing,” a witness said. “I’ll be by here tomorrow to take care of you. That’s what he said. Those were his exact words.”
When WREG-TV reached out to the Memphis Police Department about this video, they simply sent us the incident report related to the arrest.