Police in Frisco, Texas issued an apology on Friday, July 28 after drawing guns on a Black family they mistakenly thought were driving a stolen car.
Shocking bodycam footage shows the traumatic
police encounter one Black family from Arkansas had on July 23rd while driving on the Dallas North Tollway. The family was leaving their hotel in a black Dodge Charger for a basketball game in Grapevine, Texas, KSAT reports.That’s when one officer decided to run their tags due to a reported influx of burglaries and vehicle thefts involving Dodge Chargers, the Frisco police claim. When the officer mistakenly entered the license plate number out of Arizona, instead of Arkansas, she received an “incomplete.”
The officer assumed the vehicle was stolen and called for backup. Frisco police claim a sergeant arrived and realized the mistake, prompting the apology.
“We made a mistake. Our department will not hide from its mistakes. Instead, we will learn from them,” Frisco Police Chief David Shilson said in a statement.
“The officer involved quickly accepted responsibility for what happened, which speaks to integrity. I’ve spoken with the family. I empathize with them and completely understand why they’re upset.”
But that’s not what the bodycam shows. Bodycam shows the responding officers with their guns drawn ordering the family out of the car.
“Everyone put their hands outside, do it now,” an officer yells. “Walk a little faster. The tollway is shut down,” the officer shouts at the female driver. “Keep walking backwards.”
Once the driver was out, one officer yelled at a teen in the backseat who turned out to be a 6th grader, WFAA reports.
“If you reach in that car, you may get shot so be careful. Do not reach in the car,” he shouted.
Towards the end of the 10-minute exchange, officers can be heard realizing their mistake. The family consisted of a mother, father, son, and nephew.
The father explained to the officers how he is their basketball coach and they were headed to a youth basketball tournament to play their first game at 9 AM.
“Listen but we’re just here for a basketball tournament,” he tells the officers.
“Man don’t do this to my sons bro,” he says through tears. “Y’all put a gun to my son for no reason.”
“So it looks like I made a mistake,” the officer who made the initial computer entry tells them.
“We’re so sorry it happened like this,” another officer says. “We’re human as well and we make mistakes.”
The female driver, identified as Demi Janale, has since posted a TikTok recounting the traumatic experience with Frisco police.
@demijanale_ Replying to @❤️JenniferSmith❤️ this is the last part to all that happened. #littlerockarkansas #trauma #friscotx #dallastx ♬ original sound – DemiJanale
“It’s just I can’t make sense of it. And why my son was treated that way. Why he was not treated as a child,” she said.
“It’s not OK. And I thank God that we were not physically injured but we have suffered a lot of mental and emotional trauma from this.”
“I’ve cried so much today I don’t know if I have any more tears to cry. Every time I see the video of my baby, I just can’t believe it. I feel like this is a very bad dream,” she added.
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