Louisiana deputy shown slamming Black woman to ground by her braids in viral video

By Biba Adams, The grio

The incident happened late last month after 34-year-old Shantel Arnold was accosted by a group of boys.

…In the video, an unidentified JPSO deputy is seen holding Shantel Arnold’s wrist as she is lying on her back on the sidewalk. In the graphic and disturbing video, the deputy is seen dragging Arnold along the pavement. He then lifts her up and slams her to the ground several times. 

The two briefly disappear from view, and when they reemerge, the deputy is holding Arnold by her hair and slamming her body to the ground so violently that he rips out some of her braids… 

Arnold, who is only 4 feet, 8 inches tall, and weighs a mere 100 pounds, previously lost her left eye in a car accident. Her small stature and disability frequently make her a target for neighborhood bullies…

Arnold was walking home, disheveled and covered in dirt, when a JPSO deputy pulled up alongside her and asked her what happened. News reports note that the unidentified officer demanded that she stop and talk to him. 

Still upset by the assault, Arnold told the deputy he had been attacked and wanted to go home, and she continued walking…

Gray and Arnold’s uncle both witnessed the incident from the family’s driveway, which was only 20 feet away. The incident was captured on cellphone video; Jefferson Parish deputies do not wear body cameras, but officials plan to add them to their force by December…

“It is no secret that the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office has a deep-rooted history of racial discrimination and cruelty toward residents of color,” said ACLU of Louisiana’s executive director, Alanah Odoms. “The harsh political reality is the sheriff of Jefferson Parish is wholly unaccountable to the people.”  

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