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Phoenix officer in Dravon Ames viral shoplifting incident to be fired, police chief confirms

Posted at 3:16 PM, Oct 22, 2019
and last updated 2019-10-22 18:16:28-04

Phoenix police Chief Jeri Williams says she intends to fire Officer Christopher Meyer following an internal investigation into a use of force incident earlier this year that got national attention.

In June, the Phoenix Police Department opened an investigation into some of its officers and how they handled the shoplifting-theft incident involving 22-year-old Dravon Ames.< /span>

The decision comes after cell phone video was released showing an officer sweeping the leg of a handcuffed man, later identified as Ames.

The cell phone video begins< /span> with Ames flat on the pavement with his hands behind his back being handcuffed by a Phoenix police officer. Shortly after, he is yanked off the ground, pressed up against a squad car, and then his right leg is kicked by the officer.

The officer then yells, “If I tell you to do something you (expletive) do it!" “Yes, sir,” replies Ames.

Shortly after, Ames' leg is swept and another officer approaches the vehicle the suspect was in, and points a gun at the backseat. That's when a woman and her two daughters open the door and walk out.

Both Ames and the woman were handcuffed and detained, but neither was arrested.

A family spokesperson says the two were considered shoplifting suspects, stemming from their daughter taking a doll from a dollar store.

Ames and his pregnant fiancee Iesha Harper said Meyer yelled obscenities at them, held them and their kids at gunpoint, and unnecessarily kicked Ames.

The Ames-Harper family has filed a notice of claim for $10 million, which includes $2.5 million for their two children.

According to the family’s attorneys, the city has agreed to a mediation which has been scheduled for December 18.

After the case gained national attention, Chief Williams called for an investigation by the Professional Standards Bureau.

See video below of Chief Williams announcing the decision at a Tuesday afternoon press conference.

A second officer involved in the incident has been given a written reprimand after the investigations.