Video Shows Police Officer Slam 15-Yr-Old Girl To Ground

ARLINGTON -- A group of residents raised concerns Monday about an Arlington police officer slamming a 15-year-old girl to the ground while breaking up a melee, an incident a witness recorded on cellphone video and posted online.

Though one speaker said she was outraged by the video, the Rev. Kyev P. Tatum Sr. said during a news conference outside the Police Department that he was not casting judgment on the officer's actions because everything that transpired was not yet known.

"There is no secret we have had some concerns with the use of excessive force by the Arlington Police Department in the past," said Tatum, the local leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. "But we are not in any way stating emphatically at this time that we know that excessive force was used because we have not seen all the facts in the case."

Police said Monday that a review of the incident was ongoing.

Arlington Police Association President Randle Meadows said, however, that the officer used empty hand control, one of the lowest levels of force available after a person fails to follow verbal commands

"I'm confident the review will show to us and to the community the officer used the appropriate amount of force and restraint in that uncontrolled environment," Meadows said.