Independent probes launched after bodycam of officers arresting teenager raises concerns about department 'culture'
Chief Ramon Batista said he was angry and disappointed by the recent videos.
As an investigation continued into the violent arrest of an unarmed man by police in Mesa, Arizona, new bodycam video was released showing officers from the same department forcefully attempting to arrest a 15-year-old suspected of armed robbery.
"Just stop yelling like a little (expletive). Tell me where the gun's at," one officer says in the newly released video from May 17.
In the video, the teenager can be heard yelling out in pain as officers hold his arms behind his back and push his face into the trunk of a police vehicle.
"You try to move on me one more time, I'm going to [expletive] you up, you understand that?" one officer can be heard telling the teenager.
"I'm sorry, officer. I'm sorry. That was my fault," the teenager says. "My hands are up. I'm sorry."
According to the department, two officers were put on administrative leave until a use of force investigation was completed. In a police report, officers said they'd found a backpack containing a firearm near the teenager. The teenager faces charges including armed robbery with a deadly weapon and aggravated assault.
In a news conference Friday regarding the new bodycam footage, Mesa Police Chief Ramon Batista said, "The actions shown on that video and all these recent videos do not reflect the vast majority of the men and women of the Mesa Police Department ... I'm angry and I'm deeply disappointed by what I saw [in those videos.] ... It's unacceptable and it needs to stop immediately."
Batista changed the department's "use of force" policy on Thursday, restricting when officers can strike a suspect in the head.
He also said Friday that two separate independent investigations would be launched by the national Police Executive Research Forum as well as by a former Maricopa County Attorney Rick Romley.
"I have a lot of questions," Romley said Friday about the bodycam videos.
On Thursday, a lawyer for Robert Johnson, a 33-year-old man captured on video being arrested by police May 23 in a violent takedown, discussed what he called a "culture issue" at the Mesa Police Department.
"This is not a race issue. This is [a] culture issue, a police culture issue that has to change," Johnson's lawyer Benjamin Taylor said.
Mesa police said Thursday that a fifth officer had been put on administrative leave as authorities continued to investigate the May 23 incident in which officers were captured on bodycam video punching Johnson multiple times.
In a news release Thursday, Mesa police said the Scottsdale Police Department would be handling the investigation into officers' conduct.
According to the police report, officers were responding to a domestic violence call at an apartment building. When officers arrived, they approached Johnson and another man leaving the residence.
Video showed Johnson appearing to ignore officers' multiple requests to have a seat. Police said Johnson took a defiant stance against the wall. Bodycam footage showed them punching him multiple times and putting him in a headlock before ultimately handcuffing him.
"I want Mesa to be held accountable for what they have done," Johnson said during a news conference Thursday.
He and his friend are still facing multiple charges, including disorderly conduct.
The Mesa Police Association, which represents some of the officers involved, also released a statement on the incident and the release of the video.
"We do not understand why video is being released when an internal investigation has not been completed," the statement said. "It is important to understand that any use of force, when viewed, is difficult to watch and never looks 'good.'"
According to ABC News affiliate ABC15, a Black Lives Matter protest was planned in front of the police department Friday night.
