‘Should’ve Been a Warning’: Bystanders Try to Intervene as Cops Arrest 12-Year-Old Black Boy on Bike. Mom Says ‘They Went Too Far’
A viral video showing a 12-year-old boy being arrested for recklessly riding a bike has stirred outrage and raised questions about why police felt they needed to go so far as to charge the boy. A roughly one-minute clip posted to TikTok shows a police officer in Charlotte, North Carolina, explaining to a bystander the reason for the boy's detainment. “ they recklessly drive into traffic, hitting cars, we try to stop them,” the officer is heard saying. “Obviously, they take off, so we have to seize the bike…doesn’t matter if they’re a kid, it’s still illegal, right?” Charlotte-Mecklenburg police arrest a 12-year-old boy for reckless driving. (Photo: TikTok/Scooterbless) The video shows the handcuffed child sitting in the back of a police cruiser. At one point, he recites a telephone number and tells the bystanders to call his mother. One bystander is heard challenging the boy's detainment and notes the boy's status as a minor. ‘He Did Nothing Wrong!’: CVS Worker’s False Claim Against Black Teen Led to a Viral Arrest—Now the Community Wants Her Fired "So if he ain't hit no car, it should've been a warning," the bystander says. "That's not how it works," the officer responds. "That's how it should've been ... that's a minor. It should've been a warning, but you got him in handcuffs," the bystander responds. "Why you got him in the back of a police car, though?" another onlooker chimes in. "Did he hit a car?" the first bystander asks. Police continue to say the boy was taken into custody for reckless driving, and inform the bystanders that he didn't have to hit a vehicle. https://www.tiktok.com/@scooterbless/video/7555330350524697870?_r1&_tZP-90DjN8IrKP8 The individual who recorded the video posted updates on TikTok, stating that he stepped in because the boy was alone during the arrest. He said that after police seized the boy's bike, he bought him a new one. The boy's mother, Jasmine Ervin, told WBTV that her son and his friends went on a "ride-out" on Sept. 28 when they encountered police. “My son went downtown to a park, to a bike area, they have bike lanes,” Ervin said. “We have busy sidewalks and streets over here; we barely got speed bumps.” She said police followed the group and tried stopping them, but her son fled from officers because he was scared. After catching up with the boy, they arrested him about a mile away from his home. Ervin thinks the officers didn't have to resort to making an arrest and could have just brought her son home. “They absolutely did go too far. He’s 12, he’s 89 pounds,” Ervin said. "All his innocence is just gone; that was something he didn’t have to experience, he didn’t have to go through. could’ve called me, they could have brought him home, they didn’t have to put him in handcuffs like that.” In a statement to WCNC about the incident, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police say their department's Central Division often responds to reports of reckless bike riders. "Because this incident involves a juvenile, only limited information can be released to the public in accordance with privacy laws," the statement reads. "However, we can confirm that officers acted to ensure the safety of the individual seen in the video, based on the circumstances at the time. The department’s Central Division regularly responds to reports of individuals riding bicycles in a manner that poses a danger to themselves or others on city roadways. This remains an active investigation." Ervin said her son was charged with reckless driving and released to her the same day.
