After Ronald Greene’s fatal encounter with the Louisiana State Police, family members said authorities told them he died in an auto accident. However, body camera video obtained by the Associated Press shows that Greene actually died in police custody after being kicked, dragged, and tasered by several officers.
In three brief video clips posted by the news agency, Greene can be heard apologizing to the officers that night, saying he was scared and supplicating for their mercy.
When Greene’s car came to stop, the door is opened. A Taser goes off.
“OK, OK,” Greene is heard saying. “I’m sorry. I’m scared. Officer, I’m scared. I’m your brother. I’m scared.”
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Then, an officer approached Greene’s car, his weapon drawn: “Let me see your f**king hands m*therf**ker.”
After being tased, Greene can be heard moaning while still on the ground and being put in handcuffs by one officer, while another officer kicks him several times. An officer can be heard saying, “I’ve got blood all over me, I hope this guy ain’t got f**king AIDS,” as Greene continues to moan. At one point an officer drags Greene.
The Associated Press reports that Greene is left lying face down moaning for more than nine minutes while officers used sanitizer wipes to wash blood off their hands and faces. This is not in any of the video segments the AP has posted online.
The release of the clips comes as the US Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division investigates the death, along with the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana and the FBI.
In a statement, the Lousiana State Police said it did not release the video and that it was not authorized or obtained by official sources.
The AP posted three clips, totaling just over two minutes in length, from the video it said was 46 minutes long.
Watch: (WARNING, GRAPHIC CONTENT)
The report from the LSP said that two troopers pursued a vehicle being driven by Greene following an attempt to pull over Greene for an unspecified traffic violation and the pursuit ended when Greene crashed his vehicle. They did not say why law enforcement was chasing Greene.
In May 2020, Greene’s daughter filed a federal wrongful death suit against seven law enforcement officers that said he was “brutalized by Louisiana State Police and Union Parish Deputy Officers which caused his death.” The lawsuit alleged officers “used lethal force” against him.
Police told Greene’s family he had died in a car accident, according to the lawsuit. One officer told Greene’s mother he was immediately killed after hitting a tree, according to the suit.
The lawsuit said that an initial report from Glenwood Medical Center listed the principal cause of Greene’s death as cardiac arrest. He was also diagnosed with an “unspecified injury of head,” according to the lawsuit.
Two officers involved in the incident were reprimanded for their actions that night two years ago, including not following procedures for body-worn cameras.
AP reported last year that Union Parish Coroner Renee Smith said Greene’s death was ruled accidental and was attributed to cardiac arrest.
One officer is on administrative leave in connection with a separate incident. Another officer received a 50-hour suspension, according to an LSP spokesperson.
A third officer — who was heard in an audio recording last year describing beating “the ever-living f***” out of Greene — died in a single-vehicle crash in September.
