Black Alabama pastor says he was wrongfully arrested while watering his neighbor’s flowers

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August 25, 2022

By Minyvonne Burke, NBC News

Michael Jennings was charged with obstructing government operations. The charge was dropped in June.

Pastor Michael Jennings was detained by police (Childersburg Police Department Body Camera via the Law Offices of Harry Daniels)

A Black pastor in Alabama said he was wrongfully arrested and charged with a crime while watering his neighbor’s flowers.

Video of Michael Jennings’ arrest May 22 was released by his lawyers this week, “clearing the way for legal action against the officers,” they said in a news release.

In the 20-minute-long video, obtained by NBC News, a Childersburg officer approaches Jennings while he is standing on the side of a home watering plants. When the officer asks Jennings what he is doing, Jennings responds, “watering flowers.”

[…]

The officer then tells Jennings that police received a call about a suspicious person at the home.

[…]

When the officer asks for identification, Jennings declines to provide it, telling the officer that he has not done anything wrong. He also tells the officer that he’s former law enforcement.

Read about how the interaction unfolded.

Jennings joins a long line of Black people who have been arrested while completing daily activities such as waiting for the bus.

Find more articles like these in ABHM’s breaking news section.

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