Bodycam Footage Released After Jacksonville Deputies Punch 22-Year-Old William McNeil During Traffic Stop

Bodycam Footage Released After Jacksonville Deputies Punch 22-Year-Old William McNeil During Traffic Stop

Newly released bodycam footage shows Jacksonville deputies punching 22-year-old William Anthony McNeil Jr. during a February traffic stop.

According to JSO, McNeil was pulled over for not wearing a seatbelt and for driving without headlights in “inclement weather.” In the video, McNeil tells the officer, “There’s no rain,” and repeatedly asks for a supervisor before locking his doors and refusing to exit the car.

 

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Moments later, Deputy D. Bowers breaks McNeil’s window and punches him in the face.

JSO Sheriff T.K. Waters said,

“Force absolutely looks ugly… I will neither defend nor commend Officer Bowers’ response to resistance until all the facts are known.”

McNeil was ultimately charged with resisting arrest without violence and driving with a suspended license. He served two days in jail.

Bowers has been “stripped of his law enforcement authority” pending the outcome of the investigation. McNeil’s attorney says he plans to pursue legal action.

What are your thoughts on this incident?