A Jacksonville mother is accusing a police officer of using excessive force after she was arrested outside her daughter’s school, an encounter that was caught on video and has now gone viral.
The incident happened the afternoon of Oct. 7 outside IDEA Public Schools in Jacksonville.
Erika McGriff, 39, had parked her car in an intersection and left it running while picking up her 9-year-old daughter in the rain, according to Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said McGriff’s driver’s license had been revoked in the past. A deputy working at the school approached her and she attempted to walk away.
Video captures physical altercation
Video shows the confrontation escalating as the officer tried to handcuff McGriff.
Footage shows McGriff getting up and taking a swing at the deputy, investigators said.
Cellphone video from another angle shows the mother and the officer fighting and throwing punches.
The video also shows the deputy throwing McGriff to the ground while attempting to arrest her. At one point, he puts her in a headlock and she can be heard screaming that she can’t breathe.
“All I was trying to do was get my daughter out of the school, from out of school, without getting wet, drenched in the rain. That’s all and none of this. Everything that happened that was just like uncalled for and it’s not fair,” McGriff said.
Excessive force claims
McGriff, represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump, alleges that the officer used unnecessary force during the arrest.
She claims the officer used chokeholds, grabbed her hair, punched her with closed fists and put a knee on her neck.
Felony charges filed
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said McGriff violently resisted arrest, punched the officer, and bit him. She is now facing several felony charges.
Crump has vowed to fight the charges in court.
