A disabled man who was violently pulled from his vehicle by Ohio police officers during an arrest is speaking out about the frightening experience.
During an interview with CNN, Clifford Owensby said he “was in fear of my life” and “all I could do was just close my eyes and grab the steering wheel.” He also revealed that he thought it would just be a routine traffic stop and he would get a ticket and continue with his day. However, that was not the case. “Unfortunately, for me, I ended up with a bad scratch-off lottery ticket — straight to jail,” he said.
After the CNN correspondent played the body cam video back, the 39-year-old said that he prayed during the incident. “I can’t get past the fact that I’ve been humiliated like that,” Owensby said, “and that they would do anybody like that. Treat any citizen of Dayton, Ohio, or anywhere else, like that.”
As REVOLT previously reported, Owensby was pulled over by Dayton cops on Sept. 30. He gave them his license and information, however, the officers asked him to step out of the vehicle after they came across former records of his drug use. He then informed the cops that he could not move out of the car because he was a paraplegic.
After rejecting the cops’ offer to help him get out of the car, Owensby requested that their superior be called to the scene. “Here’s the thing, I’m going to pull you out and then I’ll call a white shirt,” one officer responded, according to body cam footage. “Because you’re getting out of the car. That’s not an option. You’re getting out this car, so you can cooperate and get out of the car or I will drag you out of the car. Do you see your two options here?”
Moments later, Owensby was violently dragged out of his car and handcuffed. He is planning to file a lawsuit against the department for the incident.