New York cops handcuff 11-year-old black girl

An 11-year-old black girl was handcuffed and detained by Onondaga County, New York, sheriff's deputies with the wrong person, and now the sheriff's office is justifying it by pointing out that it's common to handcuff inmates if officers know if they are I did something wrong or not because that's how cops protect themselves.

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(As for who protects innocent civilians from the cops – well, the statement didn't include an answer to that.)

According to CNY Centralthe altercation between the deputies and the young black girl reduced to tears following the encounter, was recorded by another child who identified herself as the 11-year-old girl's cousin. – meaning that black children learn what to do to protect themselves and each other in the presence of police before they even leave middle school.

It all started when police responded to a call about a stolen Kia Monday afternoon. According to the department's account, officers stopped a vehicle matching the description of the stolen car. The car eventually stopped, but the four occupants inside, including the 14-year-old driver who was reportedly in custody, fled on foot. Eventually, officers spotted a young girl dressed similarly to one of the fleeing suspects, so they arrested her and immediately handcuffed her.

From CNY Central:

When the video begins, the girl is already handcuffed with her hands behind her back. One of the other girls said, “Actually, I'm so confused I'm scared!” » One of the responding deputies, a man, told the group of children that they should “keep going.” However, they stay behind to make sure their friend and relative is okay.

Police said the 11-year-old matched the description of a suspected car thief, saying the girl's pink jacket and camouflage pants were the same ones the suspected thief was wearing. The deputy's companion, a woman, makes a phone call and asks for a photo of the suspect.

Once she has the photo, the deputies redouble their efforts.

“Girl, are you going to tell me it’s not you?” said the MP.

Turns out no, it wasn't her.

It is worth noting that when arresting a preteen girl, police officers ordered the girl's friends to “keep going,” as if it was reasonable to expect a group of young children to leave behind them their friend while she is handcuffed and crying in distress. It's almost as if black children aren't really considered children, especially once a cop has them in his crosshairs, figuratively or literally.

Another deputy accused the 11-year-old's friends of lying as they calmly tried to explain to officers that they had the wrong person.

“It is what it is. If you are honest, it will make things easier,” he told the handcuffed girls, who were crying as other police officers arrived on the scene.

Once the cops finally realized they had the wrong person, they issued an “apology” along with a justification for needlessly traumatizing a child.

“I’m sorry, but you fit the description pretty clearly,” one of the deputies said.

The ministry also offered more of a justification than an apology.

“Why would we handcuff this child? Inmates are usually handcuffed at first,” the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. “Detainees may become uncooperative, decide to flee, or decide to fight. In some cases, detainees may be armed or have contraband/evidence that they will attempt to destroy. Handcuffing from the start generally prevents a controlled situation from turning into an uncontrolled situation; ultimately preventing altercations, force and the risk of injury. The police do not know with certainty a person's age and verifying this information is part of the detention process. Handcuffing juveniles in these circumstances is legal, consistent with standard law enforcement policy and practice.

“The police do not know with certainty the age of a person,” they say. Funny — Tamir Rice's assassins proposed a similar solution police plan.

Even if they claim not to know the exact age of the young girl, the police know when they are dealing with a child. They traumatized this girl because of what they feared she (or anyone else) might do, but apparently the harm caused by the adultification of black children doesn't matter .

The office said Sheriff Toby Shelley met with the girl's mother and suggested to her that they had a productive conversation and came to an agreement. We'll just have to take this at face value, because their statements certainly don't match the mother's energy after the incident. In fact, it appears the protective mama bear is considering legal action.