A teenager was tased and hogtied before being taken into police custody for the crime of vaping on the boardwalk in Ocean City, Maryland. A separate teenager was assaulted by police in the same incident. The assaults occurred on the weekend, when a group of teenagers were out for a walk on the popular boardwalk. Police observed some of the group vaping, which is prohibited by local ordinance. The police claim that after informing the group of the ordinance, they observed one of the teens vaping. They approached again.
Video footage was widely shared on social media of the ensuing interaction. One video shows a teenager, later identified as Brian Anderson, surrounded by four police officers. He has his hands up. He reaches for his book bag and is tased by one of the officers and falls to the ground. The young man hits the ground solidly. A witness who videoed the assault claims that police asked him to remove his book bag. The youth is stripped of his pants and shoes, hogtied and carried away by officers.
In the next video, a teenager can be heard screaming “Tell me what you’re arresting me for” and “I’m not resisting” while one officer repeatedly drives his knee into the young person’s ribs. Two officers hold the teenager on the ground during the assault. People can be heard screaming for the police to stop.
Warning: these videos contain scenes of violence perpetrated by Maryland Police against young persons. These videos will be disturbing to some viewers.
Police in Ocean City Maryland tasered a 17-year-old teenager after they accused him of vaping yesterday. pic.twitter.com/PVzagAV5i1
— Rebecca Kavanagh (@DrRJKavanagh) June 13, 2021
WOW. Cops tased this 17yo Black teen and repeatedly drove their knees into his ribs until he collapsed unconscious on the ground. Then they hogtied his arms/legs and placed in a police van… all over vaping?? pic.twitter.com/4C274Q8Hnm
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) June 14, 2021
The police said the following in a statement about the event:
On Saturday, at approximately 8:28 p.m., officers were on foot patrol in the area of 12th Street and the Boardwalk, when they observed a large group vaping on the Boardwalk. Officers approached the group and informed them of the local ordinance prohibiting smoking and vaping outside of the designated areas on the Boardwalk.
We are aware of the social media videos circulating regarding this incident. Our officers are permitted to use force, per their training, to overcome exhibited resistance. All uses of force go through a detailed review process. The uses of force from these arrests will go through a multi-level examination by the Assistant Patrol Commander, the Division Commander and then by the Office of Professional Standards.
Three other young people were arrested in addition to Brian Anderson. Kamere Anthony Day, Jahtique Joseph John Lewis, and Khalil Dwayne Warren, all of them charged with a range of violations for attempting to intervene in the public violent assault. Anderson was charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, second degree assault, and failure to provide proof of identity. Anderson and the others were later released on their own personal recognizance.
Note: an earlier version of this article misidentified Brian Anderson as the subject of both videos. Two teenagers were violently assaulted by police in the course of the same incident involving vaping and the videos show two separate attacks.
