Talk of the Sound has obtained copies of two video clips posted on social media that appear to show a New Rochelle Police office draw his firearm and aim to at a youth kneeling in the snow after police responded to calls of a disturbance which one witness described as a snow ball fight.
h/t the video was posted on social media by @WattsWorld, sent to Talk of the Sound by @_KingMalcolm
The first video picks up the action in the middle of things so it is not clear from the video what transpired beforehand. The video shows an NRPD officer using obscene language, ordering the already-kneeling youths to remain down. The officer is holding his firearm with both hands, pointed directly at one of the youths. He then approaches the young man, briefly frisks him with one hand while holding onto his firearm.
The second video clip shows police telling the youths to get up and move along.
New Rochelle City officials did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
It's possible that the cops had been told the kids were armed by the dispatcher. There may be more to the story than what we see in the video. But if it is what it appears to be, you have to wonder if this was really the smartest way to handle the situation. Any time they pull out their guns and point them at people the situation escalates to a potentially lethal one.
The swearing at suspects has got to stop, by the way. I'm not a member of the language police and I'm anything but offended by it in friendly personal talk, but I think it's unprofessional and raises the volume of these incidents. Cops are being filmed now and they should know that they aren't just saying this stuff to the alleged criminal snowball throwers. They're saying it to the general public and it makes them look like thuggish amateurs. If they want respect from the public they need to sound like respectful adults who are in control.