Drinking Coffee While Black: Charles Harrel Says He Was Targeted By Officer Because Of His Race [VIDEO]

An Ohio man was merely trying to walk down the street and drink his coffee last month when he became the target of a Cincinnati police officer, according to the Free Thought Project.

29-year-old Charles Harrel used his phone to document his experience with Cincinnati officer, Baron Osterman.

As the video begins, Harrell is followed by the officer and states,

This is what we have to go through in Cincinnati. You can’t be a black man and enjoy your morning, because the police are going to harass you, Cincinnati, Ohio. … Walking down the street; the cop just asked me if I have a problem.

The Free Thought Project reports:

“Sir, I saw you crossing at the light,” Osterman said, noting that his vested authority gives him the power to deprive people of their freedom for allegedly crossing the street in a manner not fit for the police state.

Osterman claimed the man had jaywalked while Harrell says he crossed with the light. At this point, the situation is quickly escalated.

Harrell then says, “Sir, you were scaring me, sir. I don’t know why were following me, anyway. You were following me all the way down the street.”

For allegedly crossing the street the wrong way, Harrell is thrown to the wall, handcuffed, search, and arrested. The camera, which fell to the ground during the assault, continued to record the interaction.

Harrell is charged with a pedestrian violation, possession of less than 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of marijuana and resisting arrest.

Osterman is no stranger to violent, and even deadly interactions. According to Cincinnati.com: Osterman was part of a police-involved death of a black male, Nathaniel Jones, in 2003 in the parking lot of a North Avondale White Castle restaurant.
In 2004, the Citizen Complaint Authority ruled that it believed officers used excessive force in subduing Jones, 41, who weighed 348 pounds, had high blood pressure and had ingested illegal narcotics. Osterman and another officer, James Pike, had their names cleared in 2008 when a Hamilton County Common Pleas judge awarded the officers financial compensation for injuries sustained while arresting Jones and for punitive and compensatory damages.

See the clip of his experience.

Click here for the full story.

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