- One officer has been fired, and is facing 99 years in prison.
When Aundre Howard, a Black man, fled from Houston police during a traffic stop in 2019, one of the officers was caught on body camera footage telling his partner to “shoot his ass” as they pursued. When that officer finally caught up to Howard, he used a pair of handcuffs wrapped around his left hand like a pair of brass knuckles to repeatedly punch the fleeing man in the back of the head.
When Howard was brought back to the vehicle, the officers on the scene—Vieira’s partner Thomas Serrano and officer Nadeem Aslam, who are also named in the lawsuit— pulled down his pants, exposing his buttocks and genitalia to passersby and made fun of him as he lay there covered in feces.
Now, the former police officer is facing prison time.
Lucas Vieira, 31, a four-year-veteran with the Houston Police Department, was indicted by a Harris County District Court grand jury on July 9. Two days later, the Houston Police Department announced that it had fired Vieira months ago, in April. If convicted, he faces up to 99 years in prison as well as a $10,000 fine.
In another development, a White police officer punched a Black man in the face as children scream at the ugly scene.
Footage has emerged of a white policeman punching a black man in the face while he is on the ground in Newport, Wales.
Children were seen in the footage screaming in horror as the officer strikes the man with a baton while arresting him in a back garden.
The police watchdog is investigating the incident at a property which occurred around 5pm on Friday, July 9.
Mobile phone footage shows the officer repeatedly striking the suspect before pinning him down on top of some wooden pallets in a back garden.
The man, aged 41, does not appear to be fighting back.
A woman filming the scene repeatedly screams at the officer to get off of the man.
Gwent Police has since confirmed that it referred the incident to the police watchdog after footage was widely circulated on social media.
During the video the woman shouts: ‘Get off him, you’re scaring my kids.
‘I’m making a complaint on you.
‘You absolute bully. Absolute ridiculous behaviour.
‘I want the police called on the police. Let me give him some water.’
The footage, which was viewed several thousand times in less than 24 hours, elicited widespread criticism online.
One social media user wrote: ‘Didn’t see (the suspect) throwing punches, trying to run away yet the police officer still needed to use the baton.’
Another said: ‘Absolutely disgusting behaviour.’
However, others sympathised with the officer with one person commenting: ‘Perhaps the footage doesn’t tell the full story, it’s a lone officer doing his job in a volatile situation.’
Police say the man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker.
Chief Superintendent Tom Harding, of Gwent Police, confirmed the incident had been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
He explained: ‘Officers attended an address in Livale Court, Newport on Friday 9 July at around 5.05pm to make enquiries in relation to a report of a man driving while disqualified.
‘A 41-year-old man from Newport was located and was arrested on suspicion of driving while disqualified and driving without insurance.
‘He was later charged with these offences and appeared at Newport Magistrates Court on Monday 12 July.’
Mr Harding continued: ‘The man was also arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker and obstructing an officer in execution of their duty.
‘We’re aware of a video circulating on social media involving one of our officers, and Gwent Police takes all reports of this nature very seriously.
‘We understand the concern shared by the community and are in the process of reviewing our contact with this individual as a whole.
‘In the meantime we’re referring this to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) in line with normal procedure to ensure there is independent scrutiny and review.’
An IOPC spokesman said: ‘We have received a referral from Gwent Police and are assessing it to determine whether IOPC involvement in an investigation is required