Ex-officer acquitted of lying about arrest of Black man

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A erstwhile San Diego-area constabulary serviceman who pushed a Black antheral during an apprehension past twelvemonth was acquitted Friday of lying connected his study astir the incident, which was captured connected video and sparked wide looting and arson amid nationwide radical unrest.

A assemblage deliberated implicit 3 days earlier uncovering erstwhile La Mesa constabulary Officer Matthew Dages not blameworthy connected 1 number of providing mendacious testimony. Dages, 30, dropped his caput to his thorax successful alleviation aft the verdict was read.

Defense lawyer Jeremiah J. Sullivan III criticized San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan for prosecuting the case.

“The progressive DA is choosing criminals implicit cops,” helium said successful a substance to The Associated Press.

Stephan released a connection saying she was “proud that my squad courageously fought for justness without prejudice against oregon favour towards anyone.”

“The integrity of our transgression justness strategy depends connected constabulary officers filing truthful constabulary reports, and our thorough reappraisal of the facts and grounds led america to bring the complaint and contiguous the lawsuit to the jury,” she said.

Dages testified helium was truthful erstwhile helium wrote successful his study that Amaurie Johnson, 24, balled his fists and took a warring stance erstwhile helium stopped him for smoking connected a trolley level connected May 27, 2020. He besides said Johnson deed his arm.

Video taken by a witnesser and posted to societal media showed the achromatic constabulary serviceman grabbing and pushing Johnson onto a factual bench. Johnson was taken into custody connected accusations of resisting apprehension but was not charged with a transgression and was not cited for smoking.

The incidental fueled radical tensions successful the usually sedate suburb arsenic protesters claimed Johnson was singled retired for being Black. It happened 2 days aft the sidesplitting of George Floyd successful Minneapolis unleashed nationwide protests implicit constabulary brutality.

The witness’s video shows Johnson telling the serviceman to “shut the (expletive) up.” At 1 point, the antheral says helium is being arrested due to the fact that he’s Black. “That’s what the contented is,” helium said.

Body camera footage shows the back-and-forth continued connected the thrust to the constabulary station.

The serviceman says, “Did I consciousness threatened erstwhile you enactment your hands connected me? No, due to the fact that I’m not frightened of you, but I’m not going to fto you enactment your hands connected me.” Johnson denied the allegation and says helium was trying to get the officer’s hands disconnected him.

Johnson testified astatine the officer’s proceedings that helium was not smoking. He acknowledged helium swatted the officer’s manus but said helium did not shot his fists oregon instrumentality a warring stance.

Dages, who served 2 years connected the La Mesa constabulary force, was fired aft the incident. He faced up to 3 years successful situation if helium had been convicted.

The tensions implicit Johnson’s attraction exploded into convulsive protests successful La Mesa connected May 30, 2020. Two banks were burned to the ground, a occurrence motortruck acceptable ablaze and different businesses looted successful the metropolis of astir 60,000 that is eastbound of San Diego.

Authorities fired teardrop state to disperse the crowd. Demonstrator Leslie Furcron, 59, was changeable betwixt the eyes with a bean-bag circular and hospitalized.

The region called successful the California National Guard, which arrived 5 days aboriginal to forestall further violence.

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Associated Press writer Elliot Spagat successful San Diego contributed to this report.