Report: US police blocked arrest of officer in Ronald Greene case

Police officials in the US state of Louisiana blocked the arrest of an officer who was involved in the arrest and death of handcuffed Black man Ronald Greene in 2019, American media have reported. 

Records obtained by USA Today Network indicate that former Louisiana State Police (LSP) Superintendent Col. Kevin Reeves and other department officials stopped LSP investigator Albert Paxton from arresting former master trooper Chris Hollingsworth.

 Hollingsworth had turned off his camera during the deadly arrest of Greene, The Daily Advertiser reported.

Greene was arrested on May 10, 2019 in a high-speed pursuit and Louisiana state troopers punched him while he was already in handcuffed.

The 49-year-man was also dragged across the ground by shackled feet, and stunned with tasers as he cried, "I'm scared."

The police department claimed Greene died due to a vehicle crash, but an autopsy showed his cause of death was a combination of cocaine, injuries from the crash and wounds he obtained during the arrests.

Activists have called for LSP troopers to be charged after officers were seen in video footage dragging Greene “on his stomach by the leg shackles” following his violent arrest.

Investigator Paxton reportedly said in his notes after following his first investigation that Hollingsworth should have been charged with obstruction for turning off his body camera, as well as aggravated assault.

However, Paxton’s meeting with department officials "became very heated" and reportedly stymied the effort.

"We were told there was no obstruction and we needed to wait on the autopsy. We didn't know where [Greene's] left hand was. Bad case law, he was turning off his camera to hide bad driving, call his girlfriend, he was the second car in the pursuit, 'what is evidence and who decides?'" Paxton wrote in his notes.

"We were also told if we arrest Hollingsworth for turning off his camera then we [the Bureau of Investigations] would have issues with patrol,” he added.

The internal State Police records obtained recently by the Associated Press mark the first public acknowledgement by State Police that Greene was mistreated.

The records confirm details provided last year by an attorney for Greene’s family who viewed a graphic body camera video of the 2019 arrest.

The case became another national touchstone of police abuse after the unauthorized release of police video by the AP. 

More footage released in deadly arrest of Black man in Louisiana

More footage of a fatal 2019 encounter of US police troopers in Louisiana of kicking and dragging a handcuffed Black man has been released by authorities.

Black Americans are far more likely to be shot, arrested and imprisoned by police than any other racial group, according to various studies.

Experts say the dramatic gap in police shootings and prison rates reflects biased policing as well as the vast economic and educational inequalities that plague much of the country.
 

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