Police were recently caught on film pulling an elderly black woman’s hair and dragging her during a traffic stop.
The brutal incident took place in North Carolina where local media outlets confirm how the woman was held at gunpoint by a white police officer during a traffic stop. Moreover, the newly released bodycam video showcased how the officer dragged the old woman from her vehicle as the incident unfolded.
66-year-old Stephanie Bottom pleaded for assistance from bypassers who simply couldn’t do anything to help her during the incident as cops surrounded her completely.point 266 |
Therefore, the woman opted to plead with the officers from the Salisbury police department as well as the deputies from the Rowan County Sheriff’s department too.point 143 | 1
The woman didn’t understand why she was being treated this way as she reportedly mentioned how she had done nothing wrong at Interstate 85. Meanwhile, other reports of the incident showed how she was actually traveling for her deceased aunt’s funeral, which was held in Raleigh.
The heartbreaking clip was released by authorities on Wednesday as the woman filed for a federal lawsuit against the cops who mistreated her.
The shocking video begins with the cops approaching her vehicle with a gun. Authorities identified the officer as Deputy Mark Benfield who has his gun drawn, right before he grabbed her by the hair and then drags her brutally towards the ground.
Next, the video shows how the elderly woman and the second officer, Devin Barkalow, struggled to place handcuffs over the woman. The whole time, the woman lies in a face-down position towards the side of the roadway, as shown in the footage.
“Why are you doing this to me? she questions the officers helplessly. “I was just minding my own business and driving off. What have I done wrong,” again she starts to question.
The officers try to explain to her that several patrol cars have been behind her, asking her to pull over but she simply refused to obey their commands. However, the woman defends herself by mentioning how she had no idea as there was loud music playing inside her car the whole time.