AP Obtains Disturbing Body Cam Video Of Deadly Arrest Of Black Man In Louisiana

Body camera footage just obtained by The Associated Press shows the violent and disturbing conclusion to a high-speed chase in Louisiana in 2019 that ended with the death of a black man in police custody.

The video, which you can see above, is graphic and we warn you, difficult to watch. It shows Ronald Greene being punched, stun-gunned and dragged by Louisiana state troopers after leading the officers on a high-speed chase. Greene died while in custody.

His arrest and subsequent death has been marred by secrecy and accusations of a cover-up by authorities. A federal civil rights investigation into the incident is ongoing, and Greene’s family has filed a federal wrongful-death lawsuit alleging troopers “brutalized” Greene and “left him beaten, bloodied and in cardiac arrest” before attempting to cover up the cause of death.

Louisiana State Police called the release of the body cam footage “premature” and counterproductive to the ongoing investigation. But that seems to make little sense considering the incident is over two years old and it took authorities 474 days after Greene’s death to launch an investigation.

In parts of the 46-minute video that the AP acquired, one Louisiana trooper is seen using a choke-hold on Greene and punching him in the face as another officer tries to handcuff him. Greene had led law enforcement on a chase where speeds reached as high as 115 mph.

Greene at one point apologizes to the officers. “I’m sorry,” he says, just as another officer uses a stun gun on him.

“Look, you’re going to get it again if you don’t put your f——- hands behind your back,” that officer says. Another brief scene in the video shows the trooper dragging Greene face-down after his hands and legs had already been restrained.

The troopers then left Greene alone, bloodied and handcuffed, lying face-down and moaning in pain for more than nine minutes.

In its story on the video, the AP notes that Greene is not on screen for long stretches. The trooper who was wearing the body camera, Kory York, appears to have cut the microphone off about halfway through, which makes it difficult to piece together exactly what was happening at all times. He was suspended without pay for 50 hours for that infraction and for dragging Greene while he was handcuffed.

But there remains many unanswered questions about the incident, including why several of the six troopers on the scene did not have their body cameras turned on.

Even the actual cause of Greene’s death remains in dispute.

Greene’s family was initially told that he died on impact after crashing into a tree during the chase. Later, the State Police released a brief statement acknowledging only that Greene struggled with troopers and died on his way to the hospital.

Last year, The AP obtained a medical report by an emergency room doctor that noted Greene arrived dead at the hospital, bruised and bloodied with two stun-gun prongs in his back. That led the doctor to question troopers’ initial account that Greene had “died on impact” after crashing into a tree.

“Does not add up,” the doctor wrote.

The Louisiana ACLU says the video proves that the State Police covered up Greene’s death to protect its troopers.