Warning: the above video contains graphic content that may be upsetting.
In the first portion of this video, you can see the suspect, Mario Valencia, firing one round into the air. The dash cam video then shows another police cruiser careening past the officer and crashing his vehicle into Valencia, throwing him into the air like a rag doll. The second portion of the video shows the dash cam footage of the officer who hit Valencia, and after he smashes the suspect, he crashes through a brick wall.
The incident happened on February 19, but the video — just released — is starting to go viral. Valencia was allegedly in the midst of a string of crimes, which are said to include stealing a firearm, setting fire to a church, breaking and entering, and robbing a convenience store. After the incident, he was treated at a hospital for two days before being booked into jail. The question now is whether or not the police officer’s response was excessive.
“Everything in the video seems to point towards an obvious excessive use of force. It is miraculous that my client isn’t dead,” Valencia’s attorney, Michelle Cohen-Metzger, told CNN.
via Mashable