Newly released videos have shown a police punching and choking an unarmed black man accusing him of jaywalking before using a stun gun on him.
In a series of nine videos released on Monday by the police department, a former Asheville, North Carolina police officer Christopher Hickman, can be heard admonishing Johnnie Rush for jaywalking before a remark by Rush appears to set him off.
The footage were taken from the perspective of police-issued body cameras.
“Just write him a ticket. He wants to act like a punk,” Hickman says in the videos, before apparently changing his mind. “He thinks it’s funny. You know what’s funny is you’re gonna get f‑‑‑ed up hardcore. Get on the ground.”
The city website described Hickman having used “dangerous and excessive force against Johnnie Rush” and was “quickly taken off the street,” adding he was terminated by the Asheville police department over the incident.
According to The…