To: Steve Benjamin, Mayor
Fire and Charge Officer Ben Fields
Fire and charge Officer Ben Fields for body slamming and dragging a Spring Valley High School student in Columbus, SC on October 26,2015.
Why is this important?
On Monday, October 26, 2015, a Spring Valley High School student was body slammed and dragged approximately 4 or 5 feet by Officer Ben Fields, Spring Valley High School resource Officer. Sheriff Leon Scott who employed Officer Ben Fields upheld Fields behavior and said he "was acting in response to the student, who was refusing to leave class." Leon also said "The student was told she was under arrest for disturbing school and given instructions which she again refused.
"The video then shows the student resisting and being arrested by the SRO." If you notice at the start of the video, Officer Ben Fields said, "Either you come with me or I will make you." he never told the student that she was under arrest so how do you physically make someone be placed in handcuffs or say that they are resisting arrest when they was not initially told they were being placed under arrest? and if she was placed under arrest her Miranda rights were not read to her.
The first two videos show Fields approaching the girl who was sitting at a desk in a classroom. Fields grabs the girl's arm while putting his own arm around the student's neck. However, a third video from Instagram shows Fields body slamming the student while in her desk, but the student then hits the officer while he brings the desk to the ground. Then Fields began to drag the student to the front of the classroom where we then could hear him say, "You are under arrest".
The person who posted the Instagram video says the student was initially asked to leave the class for telling the teacher that she would not put away her phone. The poster says the teacher disciplined the student with a write-up for being disrespectful and disobedient. After being asked to leave again, and refusing, an administrator came to remove her, and she refused. That is when the SRO was called in. The poster of this video claims when Fields got to the classroom, he asked her to get up from her desk 4 or 5 times and again, she told him no. After moving objects from around the student, and asking again to leave the classroom, and her refusing, that is where you see the officer getting physical.
As you read, Mayor Steve Benjamin said no student in the class stated that Officer, Ben Fields told her she was 'under arrest' before he began to physically assault her as if he was a female fighting another female on the streets. We demand that you FIRE Officer Ben Fields, and that criminal charges are brought against him immediately.
"The video then shows the student resisting and being arrested by the SRO." If you notice at the start of the video, Officer Ben Fields said, "Either you come with me or I will make you." he never told the student that she was under arrest so how do you physically make someone be placed in handcuffs or say that they are resisting arrest when they was not initially told they were being placed under arrest? and if she was placed under arrest her Miranda rights were not read to her.
The first two videos show Fields approaching the girl who was sitting at a desk in a classroom. Fields grabs the girl's arm while putting his own arm around the student's neck. However, a third video from Instagram shows Fields body slamming the student while in her desk, but the student then hits the officer while he brings the desk to the ground. Then Fields began to drag the student to the front of the classroom where we then could hear him say, "You are under arrest".
The person who posted the Instagram video says the student was initially asked to leave the class for telling the teacher that she would not put away her phone. The poster says the teacher disciplined the student with a write-up for being disrespectful and disobedient. After being asked to leave again, and refusing, an administrator came to remove her, and she refused. That is when the SRO was called in. The poster of this video claims when Fields got to the classroom, he asked her to get up from her desk 4 or 5 times and again, she told him no. After moving objects from around the student, and asking again to leave the classroom, and her refusing, that is where you see the officer getting physical.
As you read, Mayor Steve Benjamin said no student in the class stated that Officer, Ben Fields told her she was 'under arrest' before he began to physically assault her as if he was a female fighting another female on the streets. We demand that you FIRE Officer Ben Fields, and that criminal charges are brought against him immediately.