Bodycam footage was released of Oregon State Police officers forcefully arresting a college student, in which the arrest has now been deemed unnecessary.
Senior Trooper Kelly Katsikis arrested Oregon State student Genesis Hansen after she refused to show the officer her driver’s license, reports CNN. Hansen was initially stopped for dangerously riding outside the lanes of the road — on her bike.
In the video, the college student can be heard asking the officer why she was stopped and if she needs to provide them with identification. Another officer soon arrives at the scene, and Katsikis explains the situation.
"Every question that I ask, we go in a circular argument wherein they state 'I don't answer questions,'" Katsikis said. "It's a minor stop to start with, but that's where we're at."
After about 15 minutes, the officer gives the 21-year-old an ultimatum.
"I need you to either give me your identification now, or you're going to be placed under arrest," the officer can be heard saying. "Which do you want to do?"
"I don't answer questions," she responds.
According to the ACLU of Oregon, it is not illegal in the state to not identify yourself, but police can detain you until your identity is established.
Throughout the interaction, Hansen does not raise her voice at the officers.
The bodycam footage then shows them moving to arrest her, forcing her to the ground and putting Hansen in handcuffs. One officer can be heard saying “she is not complying” in which Hansen responds, “I’m not moving.”
After attempting to sit up, the officers forced her once again to lay on her stomach.
Bystanders can be overheard saying the officers’ force was “unnecessary” and “abusive,” to which the officers reply they are “being gentle.”
Hansen was taken to Benton County Jail. District Attorney John Haroldson said Hansen will not be charged. Haroldson reviewed the footage several times and declared the officers had no grounds to charge her with a crime.
“There isn’t a statute requirement for you to present your driver’s license when you are riding a bicycle,” said Haroldson.
The NAACP called the incident a civil rights violation.
“We view this civil rights violation by state and local law enforcement as another example of racial inequity and excessive use of force imposed on communities of color by law enforcement,” the Alaska Oregon Washington State Area Conference of the NAACP said.
The police department released a statement saying they are looking into the arrest and working to put an end to racial profiling.
“As an agency that is committed to eliminating racial profiling and implicit bias in policing, these allegations are being meticulously reviewed, and we’re compiling as much information as possible,” the statement read. “The agency understands the importance of vigorously investigating these allegations and is taking a serious look at the incident.”
