Vol. 77/No. 16      April 29, 2013

A video that captured the incident March 21 shows officer Bradley Canterbury throwing Octavious Johnson, 28, to the ground in front of his north Omaha home, then beating him while handcuffed.

Sharee Johnson, Octavious’ mother, said at the speakout that on the night of March 21 cops beat her son after he protested their towing of cars outside the Johnson home. Juaquez Johnson, 23, videotaped his brother’s beating with his cellphone from across the street, yelling, “This is abuse.”

After more cops arrived on the scene, totaling 23 altogether, they chased Juaquez Johnson into the family’s home. The brothers’ aunt, Sharon Johnson, was knocked over in her wheelchair as officers pounced on Juaquez and his brother Demetrius, 22, who tried to tape the events inside the house. Sharon Johnson told the Omaha World-Herald that cops beat both brothers, while officers searched the house. When police left, arresting all three brothers, the two cellphones were gone.

But a video of the whole incident taken by a neighbor was featured on local news and widely viewed on the Internet.

A couple days after the assaults, Sharee Johnson, accompanied by several dozen protesters, filed a complaint with the Omaha Police Department against the cops involved.

In response to widespread condemnation, Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said April 5 that he had fired four officers, including Canterbury, and a sergeant who was in charge on the scene. The World-Herald reported that among those fired were officers suspected of trying to destroy evidence. Three others were placed on administrative leave and another reassigned.

Sharee Johnson told the Militant she had to spend $6,000 to bail out her three sons, who were framed up on charges that included disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Sharon Johnson had to go to the hospital for injuries suffered during the incident. Sharee said the cops also seized her dogs and she had to pay to get them out of the pound.

Robert Wagner, another victim of police brutality here, accompanied Sharee Johnson to file her complaint.

At the April 1 speakout Wagner explained how he was beaten and shocked with a stun gun by police in front of a hospital in May 2011, after visiting a cousin who was dying.

After Wagner publicized a video of his beating, two cops were fired, but then reinstated upon review under nonpublic police department procedures.

“They lied, they tried to spin the video saying it just showed kicks to my legs, but no, they were kicks to my head,” Wagner told the meeting.

Both Wagner and Sharee Johnson say they’ve been targets of cop harassment. “They have parked in front of my house, and they won’t give me a reason,” said Johnson.  
 
 
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