Florida Police Officers Stand Accused Of Brutal Physical Assault On Black Men Compliant During Arrest

Allegations of frequent mistreatment of Black men by officers from the Jacksonville Police Department in Florida are expected to lead to legal action. Two civil rights attorneys have now accused the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office of inhumane treatment and violent arrests of Black men.

During a recent press conference, the attorneys highlighted the recent case involving Dasun Williams. The 24-year-old’s jaw was broken during an arrest in November, when he was suspected of links to a drug cartel.

While Williams remained compliant during his arrest, he still allegedly became a victim of unnecessary force by the JSO. According to reports, he was repeatedly struck and brought to his knees by officers. They kneed and kicked him before tasing him while keeping Williams pinned to the ground.

Attorneys Ben Crump and Harry M. Daniels showed video evidence during the press briefing, which was captured by Williams’ girlfriend, who was present at the time of the arrest. The clip allegedly showed that Williams never once resisted arrest, but was still tased.

Crump stated, “He doesn’t resist, he complies,” Crump said at the briefing. “…And yet they have him on the ground face down, and they kick him repeatedly, punch him at least six to seven times, kick him at least three times, break his jaw, cause him to vomit, and cause him to have a puddle of blood under his face. And this is a person who is compliant. The police cannot be the ones who break the law if they want to be the example of how to uphold the law.”

Explaining their position, Attorney Daniels noted that tasing an individual who offers only passive resistance is against policy. He recalled previous cases in which officers from the Jacksonville Police Department allegedly punched Black men during arrests, even though they offered no resistance.

This includes an incident dating back to February 2025, in which another Black man named William McNeil was dragged out of his car by officers during a traffic stop and then allegedly assaulted.

Daniels further expressed, “The public deserves answers about why there appears to be a pattern of excessive force against Black people in Jacksonville, and Dasaun deserves accountability for the injuries he suffered.”

Back in McNeil’s case, a lawsuit was filed over the alleged excessive use of force during his arrest. Their conduct was investigated, and it was found that JSO officers had violated policy regarding the use of force. Later, a separate investigation by the sheriff’s office upheld three allegations.

In yet another incident, another Black man, Travis Brinkley, was arrested in November 2024. It was part of a citywide drug bust operation. Body camera footage from the moment of his detention showed an unarmed Brinkley allegedly being beaten by officers as he lay pinned to the ground with his arms behind his back.

What was more surprising is that Brinkley later revealed that one of the JSO officers even hurled a racial slur at him. At a press conference at the time, the victim stated, “I didn’t think I did anything to cause what happened. I was shocked. I didn’t resist, curse — I was compliant. And they called me the N-word.”

The attorneys, in view of these three incidents, concluded their press briefing by calling for violence against Black people to be stopped.

Attorney Daniels stated, “When you have an African-American sheriff and subordinates who are using racial epithets while beating citizens, if anyone is gonna stop it, you would think it would be him.”