GenderLife Forum: The Information Exchange

Police officer brutally beats a transsexual woman in memphis, TN.

Source: http://www.wmctv.com/global/story.asp?s=8515744
Video is at the link


MEMPHIS, TN (WMC-TV) - Exclusive video obtained by Action News 5 shows a Memphis police officer beating a suspect at 201 Poplar in an apparent case of police brutality.

The video, recorded February 12th, shows Duanna Johnson in the booking area at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center after an arrest for prostitution. The tape clearly shows a Memphis police officer walk over to Johnson - a transsexual - and hit her in the face several times.

"Actually he was trying to get me to come over to where he was, and I responded by telling him that wasn't my name - that my mother didn't name me a 'faggot' or a 'he-she,' so he got upset and approached me. And that's when it started," Johnson said.

Johnson said the officer was attempting to call her over to be fingerprinted. She said she chose not respond to the derogatory name the officer called her.

"He said, 'I'm telling you, I'm giving you one more chance to get up.' So I'm looking at him, and he started putting his gloves on, and seen him take out a pair of handcuffs," Johnson said.

The officer hit Johnson several times with the handcuffs wrapped around his knuckles. In the video, you can see the flash of the metal. The tape shows another officer holding Johnson's shoulders as she tries to protect herself.

After taking several blows, Johnson stands up and swings back.

"I was afraid. I had had enough. Like I said, I thought the other officers that were witnessing this would at least try to stop him," Johnson said. "I mean, he hit me so hard. Like the third time he hit me, it split my skull and I had blood coming out. So I jumped up," Johnson said.

But then she sat back down, and the officer her in the face again. Then he maced her. On the tape, other people in the room are seen turning away and fanning their hands because of the smell.

"We wanted some acknowledgement - my client did - so she would know that the Memphis Police Department didn't condone this," said Murray Wells, Johnson's attorney. "We were optimistic that they would be as outraged about this as we are, and we haven't gotten any indication that they're interested in it at all.

"These are the people we depend on to protect us, and I think the majority of officers in Memphis are good officers, and when you see what you see on that video, it's a scary sight to see that that could happen to any one of us," added attorney Arthur Horne.

On the tape, Duanna is eventually handcuffed and left on the floor. A nurse comes in, and goes directly to the officer.

"I couldn't breathe, and they just made me lay there," Johnson said. "Nobody checked to see if I was okay. My eyes were burning. My skin was burning. I was scared to death. Even the nurse came in and she just ignored me, and I begged her to help me."

The video clearly shows the nurse walk right past Duanna as she's rocking back and forth in pain in the background.

A copy of the tape was reviewed by both the FBI and the District Attorney's office, the latter of which dropped all charges against Johnson. An FBI investigation into possible civil rights violations is still underway.

Meanwhile, the Memphis Police Department confirmed to Action News 5 that the officer holding Johnson was on probation, and has been fired. The officer who threw the punches is currently on non-enforcement status pending an administrative hearing.

Here is your keepers of the peace.

Fucker ! Cowardly fucker ! Duanna Johnson better get a couple million from this and his ass out on the street.

What is incredible to me is that this all happened months ago and yet the officer is still being investigated for an administrative hearing? Where I used to work that hearing would have been held before 7 days - 14 at the most. Today, June 18 this was released------------>

This is something I know first hand. I've had my share of run in with the "Fine Members of Law enforcement" A.K.A The police, "The Pigs".

It goes with the territory. If your working as a Prostitute. The Cops bust you Then you are at their mercy. For they have none for a Transsexual hooker. To them you are a Freak, a Thing, an It. My father taught me to take a beating..

When the Cops did the same, I didn't allow them the satisfaction of showing fear, didn't beg for mercy. Lucky for me I can withstand a lot of pain.

Unfortunately There is Jack you can about the police. They have all the cards and the power. Later on, I took them on directly. Either way you cannot win. Sometimes you have to "Go down with the ship"

However not all Cops are Brutal Motherfuckers. Twice I actually caught a break from them.

Granted I have not been the most upstanding citizen, Bank Robber, Prostitute, Heroin Addict, Former Federal prisoner, So I cannot complain about Police Brutality in my instance.

Others are not so lucky.

Why do we need police anyway? If everyone followed the same code of behavior and that code was equitable then there would be no need for police. Since that has proven unachievable we spend massive resources on law writing and law enforcement. That means there is a lot less that can be spent on other things like education, helping the poorer members of society, health care etc.

Maybe the rigid societies have a better solution. We should ask the Taliban. Drug production in Afghanistan has soared since we got rid of them or removed them from power. I betcha the crime rate has also escalated.

Yeah, well, I had my own run in with a bad cop in Humboldt County, California. Forty-Five mins over the hood of a squad car. Opinions freely given on TS on subjects such as genitals, breasts and more. Especially funny was being accused of being a potential tërrorist. He goaded and goaded me for an excuse to 'haul my ass off to jail' in his words.

Ah well, I got a full apology from the chief and the cop allegedly put on a course. What more could I ask for. Justice was done.

Heh, I especially liked when he asked if English was my first language...I thought..'well it would appear I speak it better than you!'. It's rather funny looking back on it all. I used to watch the real life cop shows, never dreamed I would get to take part in one.

My crime: A busted headlamp. I'd bought the car for 500 bucks 20 hours previously. I also got done for no insurance, no DL(I didn't know I had to carry it on me at all times, everywhere else I have been in the world, you get 24 hours to present it at a station). The no insurance was lifted, but he did cause every trouble he could by ticking non-correctable on the headlamp violation..which caused a lot of probs....the sergeant himself had to take time off his coffee break and come out and see the non-correctable..but fixed headlamp.

Where I grew up, the police weren't necessarily the good guys. I don't trust the police. Fuck. I don't trust anybody.

I have a number of friends in law enforcement, so I may be able to give some perspective on this kind of problem. One problem arises from the police being authority. This makes the job attractive to people who are power hungry. In other words, they get to throw their weight around, pushing people around. Such conduct is not professional, and it certainly does not describe all LEO's.

These same individuals are also the least competent with their firearms. It would seem they see their sidearm more as a badge of office (though unpleasantly heavy and uncomfortable to wear). At the same time, they love the authority, they have not come to grips with their handgun being a very dangerous tool, that may be necessary to save their own life and/or the life of an innocent party.

Ah, cops. The largest, most ruthless gang out there. As any minority knows well.

No -- that distinction belongs to the Rhonda.

Here are photos of the two Officers.

http://www.wreg.com/Global/story.asp?S=8520836

On a positive note, that story was shown on our local 11 o'clock news yesterday. There was no reference to Duanna Johnson's trans status, she was repeatedly referred to as "she" and "the woman." The story did not go into why she was attacked, just that she was attacked by the officers.

Really doesn't make any difference what her trans status is. She was brutalized by an ignorant oaf. Who should be prosecuted for Assault with a deadly weapon. Using cuffs is the same as brass knuckles.

As a former law enforcement officer, I would wish to be on his jury.

Another thing, it used to be when an officer was accused of committing a crime. An outside agency, such as state police would take over the investigation.

Hope_WA is right. I am here in Memphis and the media coverage has been very pro-trans for the South. Duanna is the only name I have heard on the TV or radio. I wish the Tennessee Legislature was in session - maybe we could get a hate crimes bill passed.

I can't get the video to play past 5 seconds into the commercial.

Update: Both Officers were fired.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=6d7_1214470069&c=1

The comments are surprisingly supportive and positive. Even the comment by the @sshole who puts priority on clarifying that Ms. Johnson is a freak still supports that she should not have been beaten. But we can only hope that the police will turn their attention from trying to track down whoever it was that released the tape and actually prosecute James Swain and Bridges McRae for attempted murder and/or assault with a deadly weapon.

That will all be handled by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Well from beatings to murder welcome to the heartland ya all ... this just in July 2nd 2008 we add another to Remembering our dead.

A dead body in SE Memphis (aka The South's Detroit) is, sadly, not as newsworthy as some might think. In most big cities that wouldn't have gotten any airtime at all except for the twin hooks of A) the body being that of a transgendered person and B) found near a daycare center. Those are the only things that turned a depressinglyly routine incident into news.

maybe if ya see them and Know the person Ima might change ya hard crusted exterior so here is ebony the young lady no longer living

And because of were she was from or lived make her any less important than someone else ???? pardon my outrage

Every dead body has a face, a name, and a family.

Were you this outraged over the last one? How about the next one? They're all sad.

Who's hard and crusted?

Ultimately, surviving is one's personal responsibility. Not your family, not your friends, not the state's. As I've said before, life is a war and each day is a battle.

Staying alive, fed and with a roof above you means winning battle after battle, and hopefully one dies before being too weak to start losing such battles.

The day one of us gets killed, what can the rest do beyond feeling sad over it? We'll be forgotten in a week or two, as happened with those who already passed.

QR:

As an aside, Google body+found+in+Memphis. There're ten news stories on the first page of the search alone, ranging from a twelve year old girl to a 57 year old man. They all date to this year. The story mentioned above is just the latest (although not the first body found in July.)

I'm supposed feel special sadness and outrage over this particular one? Or can I get credit for my general sadness and outrage?

Sounds to me like he was a Cross-dresser more than Transsexual, seems he was working as a Prostitute without letting his clients know he was in drag. The family keeps referring to him as just that He and Him.

I think this maybe more a Gay issue than a Transsexual issue, your outrage I find outrageous.

Phew.

That lets me off the hook then. I don't need to get outraged over dead crossdressing hookers. Or dead regular hookers, for that matter. Just the dead TS ones, right?

Well, so far you're not the one dumping those bodies, society doesn't care how you feel.

Adorable, eh?

Tess_au could die tomorrow and, to be honest, I wouldn't care. That's how one becomes, I guess.