Latest news with #Waters
Indian Express
8 hours ago
- Indian Express
WATCH: Florida officers punch, drag a Black man from his car during traffic stop
Florida deputies have been accused of punching and dragging a Black man from his car during a traffic stop in February after a video of the incident went viral and sparked a nationwide outrage, as civil rights lawyers condemned the sheriff's department in Jacksonville, Florida. The footage shows William McNeil Jr, 22, recording the video as he sat in the driver's seat asking to speak to Jacksonville deputies' supervisor after deputies pulled him over. He's heard asking questions about why he was stopped when the authorities broke the glass of the window, punched him in the face and pulled him from the car and again punched him before pitting him to the ground. New video has emerged as authorities in Jacksonville, Florida, say they are investigating a viral video showing deputies punching and beating William Anthony McNeil, Jr.,a 22-year-old Black man, during a traffic stop. — ABC News (@ABC) July 22, 2025 Local media in the US reported about the video on Monday and Tuesday after McNeil posted the footage on social media. However, Jacksonville Sheriff TK Waters warned the public against 'rushing to a judgement' as he said that there's more to the story than the mobile phone video recorded by McNeil that went viral online. Waters said sheriffs asked McNeil several times to come out of his car. Jacksonville police say officers did not violate criminal law during the violent traffic stop of William McNeil Jr. — despite disturbing footage showing him punched and dragged. An internal investigation is underway to determine if the officers violated department policy. 🎥:… — Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) July 22, 2025 Civil rights group Black Lives Matter and McNeil's lawyers have said that the video suggests police brutality. 'This should not have happened. But the police have never treated Black people like human beings,' Black Lives Matter said on X. The State Attorney's Office in Florida said that none of the deputies violated criminal law as Sheriff Waters told reporters that a review of the incident was ongoing. Informing about action taken against deputies, Waters said D. Bowers, the officer who broke the car window and punched McNeil, has been stripped of his law enforcement authority till the outcome of the review. McNeil was arrested on February 19 and charged with resisting arrest, marijuana possession, driving with a suspended license, not wearing a seatbelt and not having headlights in bad weather, court records cited by ABC News showed. (with inputs from Reuters, AP)
Sydney Morning Herald
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Authoritarian, aggressive, unlikeable': Greens co-founder on his party
A co-founder of the Australian Greens who was removed from the party over an online debate on trans people has accused the party of tolerating no dissent on the issue that has caused the expulsion of dozens of 'good environmentalists'. Drew Hutton, 78, co-founded the national Greens alongside Bob Brown in the early 1990s, but was formally ejected from the party at the weekend in part for refusing to delete comments made by others on his Facebook page that the party organisation deemed to be transphobic. 'Over the last decade or so, it would seem that some people have come into the Greens with the determination to take it over,' Hutton said. 'To convert it into the sort of party whose, one of whose, main preoccupations is with transgender rights. 'They've got an absolutely rigorous determination to stop any dissent from occurring to the things they think are important. The main things they think are important are we get rid of the notion of biological sex and replace it with gender identity,' he told ABC 7.30 on Tuesday night. While Hutton said he did not have an issue with transgender rights, he criticised campaigners for having 'a closed set of beliefs. They have a closed language, which they understand but nobody else does'. On one side of the debate within the party are people who believe allowing people to self-identify as another gender, with full legal rights, is a critical step to protect the dignity and health of trans people. Others are more critical and argue there should be safe spaces for cisgender women and greater safeguards on the transition process. Greens leader Larissa Waters said the situation was 'really sad' given Hutton's history in the party, but she defended its administrative wing and its stance on trans issues. However, Waters noted the process whereby he was expelled was run by party members, and the Greens 'are a safe party for trans people … and will always be'. Waters dismissed claims of an authoritarian bent within the party, saying there was room for 'robust debate' and differences of opinion within the party code of conduct.
The Age
11 hours ago
- Politics
- The Age
‘Authoritarian, aggressive, unlikeable': Greens co-founder on his party
A co-founder of the Australian Greens who was removed from the party over an online debate on trans people has accused the party of tolerating no dissent on the issue that has caused the expulsion of dozens of 'good environmentalists'. Drew Hutton, 78, co-founded the national Greens alongside Bob Brown in the early 1990s, but was formally ejected from the party at the weekend in part for refusing to delete comments made by others on his Facebook page that the party organisation deemed to be transphobic. 'Over the last decade or so, it would seem that some people have come into the Greens with the determination to take it over,' Hutton said. 'To convert it into the sort of party whose, one of whose, main preoccupations is with transgender rights. 'They've got an absolutely rigorous determination to stop any dissent from occurring to the things they think are important. The main things they think are important are we get rid of the notion of biological sex and replace it with gender identity,' he told ABC 7.30 on Tuesday night. While Hutton said he did not have an issue with transgender rights, he criticised campaigners for having 'a closed set of beliefs. They have a closed language, which they understand but nobody else does'. On one side of the debate within the party are people who believe allowing people to self-identify as another gender, with full legal rights, is a critical step to protect the dignity and health of trans people. Others are more critical and argue there should be safe spaces for cisgender women and greater safeguards on the transition process. Greens leader Larissa Waters said the situation was 'really sad' given Hutton's history in the party, but she defended its administrative wing and its stance on trans issues. However, Waters noted the process whereby he was expelled was run by party members, and the Greens 'are a safe party for trans people … and will always be'. Waters dismissed claims of an authoritarian bent within the party, saying there was room for 'robust debate' and differences of opinion within the party code of conduct.
Boston Globe
17 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Video shows Florida deputies punching and dragging a Black man from his car
'What happened to William McNeil Jr. is a disturbing reminder that even the most basic rights — like asking why you've been pulled over — can be met with violence for Black Americans,' lawyers Ben Crump and Harry Daniels said in a statement. Crump is a Black civil rights attorney who has gained national prominence representing victims of police brutality and vigilante violence Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'William was calm and compliant,' they said. 'Yet instead of answers, he got his window smashed and was punched in the face, all over a questionable claim about headlights in broad daylight.' Advertisement Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters said the cellphone camera footage from inside the car 'does not comprehensively capture the circumstances surrounding the incident.' 'Part of that stems from the distance and perspective of the recording cell phone camera,' the sheriff said in a statement, adding that the video did not capture events that occurred before officers decided to arrest McNeil. Advertisement Cameras 'can only capture what can be seen and heard,' the sheriff added. 'So much context and depth are absent from recorded footage because a camera simply cannot capture what is known to the people depicted in it.' McNeil was charged with resisting a police officer without violence; driving with a suspended license and having less than 20 grams of marijuana, Waters said. He pleaded guilty to the charges of resisting an officer and driving with a suspended license, Waters said. McNeil was warned seven times that he needed to open his car door and get out, or officers would be forced to break his car window, the sheriff said. After McNeil was removed from the car, officers found a 'large, serrated knife' on the driver's side floor of the car, Waters said. Waters said the sheriff's office on Sunday became aware that the cellphone video was circulating on social media. Investigations then began, and the State Attorney's Office determined that no officers violated any criminal laws, he said at a news briefing. An 'administrative review' to determine whether officers violated any department policies is still ongoing, he said.
Winnipeg Free Press
18 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Video shows Florida deputies punching and dragging a Black man from his car
A video showing Florida deputies punching and dragging a Black man from his car during a traffic stop has sparked nationwide outrage, with civil rights lawyers accusing authorities of fabricating their arrest report. William McNeil Jr., 22, was sitting in the driver's seat, asking to speak to the Jacksonville deputies' supervisor, when authorities broke his window, punched him in the face, pulled him from the vehicle, punched him again and threw him to the ground. The footage from the Feb. 19 arrest shows that seconds before being dragged outside, McNeil had his hands up and did not appear to be resisting as he asked, 'What is your reason?' He had pulled over and accused of not having his headlights on, even though it was daytime, his lawyers said. FILE - Attorney Ben Crump speaks during a news conference, May 5, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, file) 'What happened to William McNeil Jr. is a disturbing reminder that even the most basic rights — like asking why you've been pulled over — can be met with violence for Black Americans,' lawyers Ben Crump and Harry Daniels said in a statement. Crump is a Black civil rights attorney who has gained national prominence representing victims of police brutality and vigilante violence 'William was calm and compliant,' they said. 'Yet instead of answers, he got his window smashed and was punched in the face, all over a questionable claim about headlights in broad daylight.' Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters said the cellphone camera footage from inside the car 'does not comprehensively capture the circumstances surrounding the incident.' 'Part of that stems from the distance and perspective of the recording cell phone camera,' the sheriff said in a statement, adding that the video did not capture events that occurred before officers decided to arrest McNeil. Cameras 'can only capture what can be seen and heard,' the sheriff added. 'So much context and depth are absent from recorded footage because a camera simply cannot capture what is known to the people depicted in it.' McNeil was charged with resisting a police officer without violence; driving with a suspended license and having less than 20 grams of marijuana, Waters said. He pleaded guilty to the charges of resisting an officer and driving with a suspended license, Waters said. McNeil was warned seven times that he needed to open his car door and get out, or officers would be forced to break his car window, the sheriff said. After McNeil was removed from the car, officers found a 'large, serrated knife' on the driver's side floor of the car, Waters said. Waters said the sheriff's office on Sunday became aware that the cellphone video was circulating on social media. Investigations then began, and the State Attorney's Office determined that no officers violated any criminal laws, he said at a news briefing. An 'administrative review' to determine whether officers violated any department policies is still ongoing, he said.
