PHOENIX — Charges were officially dismissed on Friday in the case involving the arrest of a deaf man with Cerebral Palsy. The case has sparked a lot of outrage among local and national organizations as well as community members.
Maricopa County Attorney, Rachel Mitchell, announced Thursday all charges against Tyron McAlpin would be dropped. The 34-year-old faced charges that included Felony Assault and Resisting Arrest, after an interaction between two Phoenix police officers on August 19th.
The video shows the officers hitting and shocking McAlpin multiple times. It came after another man claimed McAlpin assaulted him.
A police report states the officers gave McAlpin multiple chances to comply with their commands. In an interview Tuesday with one of McAlpin's attorneys, he says otherwise.
"It's ridiculous," Jesse Showalter said. "First off, we know he's deaf and can't hear their commands. The other thing we can see in that video is in response to the first tasing, Tyron rolls over on his side and his hands are right there and if they wanted to handcuff him they should've just grabbed his hands and handcuffed him."
In the statement released by Mitchell, it says her decision to drop charges came after reviewing all documents involved in the case. She states:
"Last Friday, a leader of the local chapter of the NAACP shared his concern with me regarding the prosecution of Mr. Tyron McAlpin. I promised I would personally review the case including a large volume of video recordings, police reports, and other materials that have been forwarded to my office. On Tuesday of this week, I also convened a large gathering of senior attorneys and members of the community to hear their opinions as they pertain to this case. I have now completed my review and have made the decision to dismiss all remaining charges against Mr. McAlpin."
One person she spoke to was Arizona NAACP Vice President, Andre Miller.
"When you see this video," he said. "When you see what happened it raises a lot of flags that there's a problem here and something needs to be done. I was hopeful charges would be dropped, especially knowing everything about this particular case. And again, it's imperative people know about this case. Tyron was not a suspect of any crime. He had not done anything wrong."
The Phoenix Law Enforcement Association, or PLEA, sending a statement:
“We are appalled at the decision by Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell to dismiss the charges against Mr. McAlpin. The two Phoenix Police Officers involved in the incident were investigating a crime where the alleged victim had a visible injury from being robbed and assaulted. While gathering the information, the victim pointed out the alleged suspect who was walking alone 40-50 yards away. After confirming he desired prosecution, they went to contact the suspect. The alleged suspect, Mr. McAlpin, attempted to avoid the officers and was ignoring their directions to stop. Our officer exited his marked patrol car in full Phoenix Police uniform and attempted to grab the individual’s arm to lawfully detain him and our officer was immediately assaulted. At no time did Mr. McAlpin convey to them that he was hearing impaired or suffered from cerebral palsy. Our officers defended themselves against the attack of Mr. McAlpin. It is unfortunate that a narrative was created accusing these officers of targeting Mr. McAlpin due to his race and disabilities. This is completely false and an inaccurate portrayal of what occurred in real time as the officers encountered Mr. McAlpin. What has transpired over the past week is an ugly smear campaign against Phoenix Police. The Phoenix Police Department provides training on how to interact with community members, victims and suspects, who are hearing impaired and/or disabled, however, we are also trained on how to defend ourselves if faced with a violent individual intent on hurting us. We stand behind our officers and thank the men and women of the Phoenix Police Department for their service to our community.”
During a preliminary hearing less than three weeks ago, the officers in the case though were asked about the training they received but said they either didn't remember too much of it because it was from seven years ago or that they couldn't recall much of any formal training.
The Phoenix Police Department sent 12News a statement about Mitchell's decision:
"We appreciate the important job of the Maricopa County Attorney in making decisions related to prosecution. We respect her decision and the process she went through in reaching her conclusion. This incident continues to be part of an internal investigation by the Professional Standards Bureau which, when completed, will be made public."
Governor Katie Hobb's office also sent a statement:
"Governor Hobbs is committed to protecting all Arizonans and is deeply concerned about the images from Mr. Tyron McAlpin’s arrest. While we await the investigations’ results, the Governor’s Office has directed AZPOST to issue reminders to all law enforcement agencies about the training created in partnership with the Arizona Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. This crucial training is designed to ensure law enforcement can engage effectively with individuals with disabilities. She urges all public safety personnel to participate in this training, even if it’s not mandatory to prevent similar incidents."
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