The head of Milwaukee’s police department apologized on Wednesday night after a video surfaced of officers using a taser on NBA player Sterling Brown in an incident in January.
Chief Alfonso Morales added that the police officers were being “disciplined” after an investigation into the matter.
“The department conducted an investigation into the incident which revealed members acted inappropriately and those members were recently disciplined,” Morales said, according to CNN. “I am sorry this incident escalated to this level.”
According to CNN, Morales did not take any questions.
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An uproar began on social media after body-cam footage showed a group of policemen surrounding 23-year-old Milwaukee Bucks guard Brown in the early morning hours of January 26 and began questioning him over an alleged parking violation outside a Walgreens. Brown refused to let the officers continue to reprimand him for the alleged violation and when he did not cooperate with their demands, they tased him and arrested him.
“Unfortunately, this isn’t an isolated case. It shouldn’t require an incident involving a professional athlete to draw attention to the fact that vulnerable people in our communities have experienced similar, and even worse, treatment,” the Bucks said in a statement shared by CNN. “We are grateful for the service of many good police officers that courageously protect us, our fans and our city, but racial biases and abuses of power must not be ignored.”
In the body-cam video, one policeman asks Brown why he is parked across some handicapped spaces and then repeatedly tells the basketball player to “back up.”
After several tense exchanges between the officer and Brown, the former calls for backup and says “We’re going to figure out what we’re gonna do.”
“You can’t do that by yourself?” Brown replies.
The officers who arrive later are heard asking Brown to remove his hands from his pockets. Brown only says he has “stuff” in his pockets and the police then proceed to force him to the ground and use their stun gun on him.
This is one of several incidents of police brutality against African-Americans that has further fueled the “Black Lives Matter” movement.
On Thursday, ESPN’s Michelle Beadle explained how the incident involving Brown is connected to the national anthem protests that have taken place in the NFL and in other major sports leagues. The NFL announced on Wednesday that players who kneeled or sat during the anthem would be fined, although they can choose to stay in the locker room.
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