A Black boy selling palmetto roses in front of a South Carolina Circle K was aggressively arrested by several cops Tuesday in an incident recorded by a bystander and posted on social media, where it has gone viral, resulting in one cop being placed on administrative leave.
The incident took place in North Charleston and was recorded by a Black woman who posted it on TikTok, showing one cop on top of the boy inside the store trying to handcuff him.
The store manager had called the cops, accusing the boy of damaging a case of water with the roses by puncturing a hole in a container and refusing to pay for it.
The woman recording said it was an accident and offered to pay for the damage, but the cops insisted on arresting the boy, who is 15, according to local media who spoke to a relative.
The video begins once the cop is atop the boy trying to arrest him, so it does not show what led up to the arrest.
“Get off of me!” screamed the teen. “I’m not doing nothing wrong!”
“I’m scared for my life!”
More North Charleston police officers arrived and at least three more piled on top of the boy to assist in the arrest. Another cop with a police dog came rushing in and stood a few feet away, holding back the dog, which appeared ready to jump into the fray and maul the boy.
Several bystanders were in an audible state of frustration as the young man screamed for his life.
“That’s a minor, y’all,” said the woman recording the video.
“That was not necessary. That was a little boy.”
“Somebody help me!,” begged the minor
The video posted below ends after multiple cops stuff the screaming boy begging for someone to help him into the back of a patrol car.
‘They were choking him’
The woman who recorded the video goes by @itsthabenjamins on TikTok and wrote the following description to describe what she had witnessed inside the store.
a MINOR was selling roses at the circle k on rivers and otranto (8700 rivers ave). he leaned on a case of water ACCIDENTALLY putting a hole in it and the lady in the maroon shirt said “you don’belong here” and called the police making allegations that a BLACK MAN is damaging property and harassing people. MULTIPLE witnesses were in the store. the first officer you see came into the store talking to the MINOR saying he had to pay for the “damages” and leave. the MINOR said “i didn’t damage anything but i will leave the store.” the officer said you’re not leaving without paying.
i offered to pay for everything. the MINOR tried to leave and the officer tackled him to the ground and the rest went from there. i begged them to call his parents. there was 6-9 officers that piled up on this MINOR and brought a K9 in. they were choking him and he was literally begging and screaming for his life…unfortunately i couldn’t get a clear photo of his face. a black officer said it doesn’t matter that he is a minor and was EXTREMELY rude throughout the entire situation. while trying to put this MINOR in the car the multiple officers pushed and shoved this boy over and over to get him inside.
i pleaded for them to call his parents and let me pay for whatever “damages” and they refused…this hit so hard for me to the point of tears. this is a YOUNG BLACK MINOR that was just selling hand crafted roses. he was not rude, belligerent, armed or dangerous. just YOUNG and BLACK!!! when i spoke to the officers about how unnecessary their actions were, he stated that “when these rose boys have someone say they dont want to buy a rose, they get loud and disrespectful and cuss people out and hit them”. i said NONE OF THAT HAPPENED! THAT WAS NOT THE CASE HERE!!! NCPD needs to do BETTER! #ProtectOurChildren
The woman has since posted an updated video alleging the young man was taken to the Honda dealership across the street and was released about an hour later without being taken to jail. The manager, identified as Marie Mems, also retracted her initial accusations.
@itsthabenjamins UPDATE!!! circle k incident. there’s so many questions and comments but i hope this helps. Again, this is not my personal situation and unfortunately i cannot answer every question or concern
Palmetto Rose Boys
The boy, whose name has not been made public, is apparently a member of the “Palmetto Rose Boys” who are Black youths who have historically sold handmade roses crafted from the leaves of palmetto trees, the state tree of South Carolina.
Charleston, the state’s most populous city, borders North Charleston and has a partnership with a Black-owned company called Community Solutions Consultant LLC to run a mentorship program to teach entrepreneurial skills to Black youths between the ages of 9 to 17 years old.
One of the youths participating in the program, Zihaire Jackson, went on to launch his own business called the Palmetto Artisan Company. Jackson is now studying entrepreneurial leadership at Mars Hill University in North Carolina, according to his company’s website.
But the Palmetto Rose Boys have also had their share of controversy, including a violent arrest last year of a 13-year-old Black boy selling the palmetto roses in front of a Walmart in Summerville, a city that borders North Charleston. And in 2018, Charleston police arrested a 16-year-old Black boy for selling the palmetto roses without a permit, meaning he was not enrolled in the city’s program.
Palmetto Rose Boys have also been accused in the past of harassing people who decline to buy their products, according to a Reddit thread.
Regarding the recent arrest, North Charleston police issued the following statement to the media:
We are aware of an incident that occurred last night involving a juvenile who was detained by one of our officers at the Circle K located at Rivers Avenue and Otranto Road.
This matter is being taken very seriously. An immediate internal review has been initiated, and the officer involved has been placed on administrative leave while the investigation is underway.
We understand the concern this has raised in our community. Transparency, accountability, and trust are core to our values, and we are committed to conducting a thorough and impartial review.
We thank the community for its patience and understanding as we work to determine the full facts of this incident.
However, police have not released the officer’s name, but ABS will update this story when and if they do.
North Charleston is the same city where a police officer named Michael Slager fatally shot a Black man named Walter Scott in the back as he was running away in 2015, resulting in the cop being sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Great Job Carlos Miller & the Team @ Atlanta Black Star Source link for sharing this story.
