MCKEESPORT, Pa. — The McKeesport Police Department is under fire after a video of an arrest was shared on social media over the weekend.
In the now viral video, you can see officers kneeling on the neck of an elderly man and kneeing him repeatedly. Officers remained on top of the man until he was handcuffed and then sat upright.
The man in the video is 72-year-old Callie Stinson Sr. According to his family, he is now hospitalized suffering from head trauma and broken ribs. Stinson was charged with two counts of simple assault and one count of resisting arrest.
“This is a 70-year-old man, and there is nothing that you can tell me that could have provoked such an attack; there is no excuse for that at all,” said Fawn Walker Montgomery, the CEO of Take Action Advocacy Group.
Stinson’s arrest is not under review, sparking outrage among community members.
“This is a pattern of excessive force and misuse of power by McKeesport Police Department that has been going on for years,” Montgomery said.
In 2020, the ACLU of Pennsylvania filed a lawsuit against the City of McKeesport, Allegheny County, and numerous police officers following what they called an aggressive manhunt that targeted black residents and violated their Fourth Amendment rights.
On Monday, the police chief defended his officers’ use of force. According to police, on Saturday afternoon, officers were called to Beech Street, where Stinson was allegedly threatening to throw a brick at another man. When officers approached, Stinson rushed the victim and began throwing punches.
“Their knees [are] on his neck and they are just jamming it and jamming it into [his side] and there is no need for that. We are people, we are not dogs, we are not inhumane, we are actual human beings,” Montgomery said.
The City of McKeesport mayor said the incident will not be reviewed by an outside agency, something Montgomery said is a mistake.
She’s encouraging residents to go to the next city council meeting on April 2 to push for action.
“They are not judge, jury and executioner, it is not up to them to decide who lives and dies,” she said.
But, following our reporting, the City of McKeesport confirmed that the incident will undergo an internal investigation that could lead to an external review.
The Take Action Advocacy Group is also hosting a town hall on March 20th for community members to voice their concerns.
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