An unarmed Black Florida teen was tased by a state trooper after being followed into his girlfriend’s backyard.

Jack Rodeman, 16, was walking to his girlfriend’s home in Fort Meyer on June 16 when he was followed by Trooper George Smyrnios who described the teen as a suspicious person, according to the police report obtained by Wink News.

The trooper tased him as he was texting his girlfriend to come outside.

The arresting officer said the teen “darted” through the shrubs to access the backyard, and wasn’t complying with his commands. In court documents, Smyrnios reportedly wrote he “could not see (Jack’s) hands” and “I was concerned that he might have a weapon.”

“His behavior, demeanor, and body language appeared to be a burglar. It looked to me like he had just committed a crime or was about to commit a crime,” Smyrnios wrote.

The impact of the taser catapulted Rodeman backward, hitting his head on a brick fountain as seen on the security footage.

Smyrnios arrested Rodeman after his girlfriend came outside to say he had permission to be in her backyard. The 16-year-old was charged with loitering, possession of medical marijuana and a criminal traffic violation.

Kristina Rodeman, Jack's mother, believes that this was another instance of racial profiling by police officers.

“He was profiled because he is Black in black clothes. There is no doubt in my mind,” Kristina said. “He wasn’t doing anything wrong. He literally was just walking down the street going to his girlfriend’s.”

The incident was caught on a surveillance camera and is now under administrative review by the Florida Highway Patrol. After viewing the footage, a law enforcement expert says there was no reason for Smyrnios to fire his Taser.

Watch Cop Almost Kill 16-Year-Old Black Kid Jack Rodeman With Taser For Being Black in Nice Neighborhood; Even After His Girlfriend Explained He Had Every Right to Be There; They Still Locked Kid Up For 21 Days (Vids-Tweets) https://t.co/p6v1ESZVNx via @YuriyATL
pic.twitter.com/P469jxf4Uk

— Robert Littal BSO (@BSO) June 23, 2021

“The most egregious part to me is here’s a kid who was offering no active resistance but passive resistance by being on his phone and texting and because he failed to comply with your lawful order, you shot him with a Taser and he fell and hit his head on a brick,” David J. Thomas, a professor of forensic studies at FGCU and a former police officer, said.

"The use of a CEW (conducted electrical weapon) is authorized and may be an appropriate response in the case of a sudden attack, or when ‘active resistance’ or greater is offered by a subject who is about to be taken into custody for any reason,” FHP policy states.

Kristina has hired an attorney to fight the arrest and use of force charges against her son.

“He is going to have to be x-rayed and looked at for any vertebral fractures without a doubt,” her attorney Derek Tyler said.

Civil rights lawyer Ben Crump also spoke out about the incident.

“FHP trooper George Smyrnios repeatedly tased 16yo Jack Rodeman as he waited for his girlfriend on her back deck!” Crump tweeted.

“Smyrnios hasn’t been suspended or punished for his unlawful actions against this teen who posed NO THREAT! He should be held accountable for his egregious actions!” he added.

Tyler has promised to pursue justice for Jack and his family.

“We are going to vigorously defend all of the charges and we are also going to vigorously pursue every legal avenue available regarding the unmitigated, unjustified torture that he was subjected to by the officer involved,” Tyler said.

The teenager remains in juvenile detention.

Kristina Rodeman

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