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| Zayd, the man seen in the video, is a student at nearby Naropa University and handed police his school identity card during the altercation to prove he could be on the property. |
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Colorado cops detain black man at gunpoint for picking up trash: "This is my house - I live here"
Daily Mail
Wed March 6, 2019
Area: Denver
Distressing video has revealed how a black man was confronted by at least five police officers while picking up trash outside his own house in Colorado.
Footage taken from inside the home in Boulder shows the man, Zayd Atkinson, having an angry conversation with an officer on Friday morning.
Boulder police have now launched an investigation after the video caused fury when it was posted online, and say the officer who initially confronted the man has been put on administrative leave.
As the video starts, Zayd can be heard telling one cop, who has his gun drawn and pointed at the ground, that he has 'no right' to be detaining him.
Meanwhile the cop can be heard shouting back at him to 'put down the weapon', referring to the litter-picker in his hand.
Reinforcements soon arrive as at least four other officers surround an increasingly irate Zayd, while his friend shouts at them to leave from inside the property.
Zayd, a model with Model Management Group (MMG), can be heard repeatedly telling the officers that he lives at the property.
At one point he claims there are eight officers surrounding him, though only five are visible at any one time in the video.
After almost 15 minutes the situation begins de-escalating and Zayd goes over to have a conversation with one of the officers.
The two men spend several minutes talking before sharing a fist-bump as Zayd walks back into the house and the video ends.
Boulder police say they are now investigating the incident.
A police press release said the altercation began after an officer saw a man sitting in a partially enclosed patio area behind a private property sign around 8.30am.
The officer asked the man whether he was allowed to be there, to which the man said he lived there and was picking up trash.
He then showed the officer his school identity card.
The officer detained the man to investigate further and then called for backup, saying the man was unwilling to put down 'a blunt object', meaning the litter-picker.
A supervisor and several other officers responded to the call, but left after determining that the man had a right to be there.
On Monday morning the police force launched an internal affairs investigation.
The Professional Standards Review Panel - which is made of six community members and six members of the police department - will then review the findings and provide a recommendation to the chief of police of any further action.
Police Chief Greg Testa spoke to the city council on Tuesday night during which he said the incident was 'extremely concerning' and promised a full investigation.
'All aspects of this incident, specifically the actions of the initial officer are being investigated,' he said.
The probe will include interviews with everyone who was involved in the incident, and reviews of all footage including body camera footage.
Protesters held up trash grabbers during the meeting and clacked them together along with signs that said 'black lives matter'.
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