THE LEADER STAFF
The Leader published a story about a SUNY Fredonia student who was allegedly assaulted, according to a lawsuit that was filed, and then was arrested by police for disorderly conduct. The writer interviewed and obtained information to write this story from the mother of that student in exchange for anonymity.
See article “Fredonia student says he was assaulted, then police arrested him.“
In the sidebar accompanying the article, the author called into question whether the police were justified in the arrest.
It is our position at The Leader that the Fredonia police were not, in any way, justified to arrest the student from the evidence we have reviewed.
Not only was the arrest unjustified, but the police are arguably the instigators here.
There was no logical reason to hold the alleged victim for questioning unless he was considered a suspect.
So, assuming that he was considered a suspect when he encountered the police, why would he be?
The alleged victim did not match the description of a Black male in a blue hoodie except for one very crucial detail — he was a Black male.
The logic of holding the alleged victim on Canadaway after he pleaded to go home and insisted he would like a lawyer is critically flawed. The logic of arresting the alleged victim for disorderly conduct is also critically flawed, but in a different way.
If, for even a moment, the officers considered the student to be a victim, they might have been able to gather critical information from the victim’s perspective. The demeanor of the police officers could have changed and created a safer environment for the alleged victim.
Instead, they were more focused on forcing the alleged victim to cooperate as a suspect.
Some may wonder if the alleged victim could have done anything differently to avoid the arrest.
According to the New York Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU division of New York, when you are stopped by police you “Do not make any statements regarding the incident” and, “If you are arrested, ask for a lawyer immediately.”
Given that the alleged victim did both of these things, we conclude that the victim did what he could to manage the situation given his circumstances.
Let us not forget that the student in question said he was just the victim of what he described as a group assault, likely shook up and all he wanted was to go home.
Still with blood in his mouth, as evidenced by a testimonial from the mother and by reviewing the body camera footage, the alleged victim was likely shaken and not in the best condition to talk to police.
Yet Fredonia police officer Dylan Robinson still decided to stop the son and hold him at Canadaway Street until the situation escalated to the point of arrest.
The issues of wrongful arrests ma against Black people have been a wide scale issue for years in America.
The Los Angeles riots, which occurred on April 29, 1992, and lasted for six days, occurred after the public reaction and outrage to the acquittal of the police officers responsible for the unjust arrest and beating of Rodney King. The 30-year anniversary of the riots has led many to wonder how far we have come since this historical event.
It is evident that after three decades, we are still facing many of the same race issues with our law enforcement throughout the U.S., even in our small town of Fredonia.