photo: John-Morgan/ BY-NC-SA

Last Sunday another act of excessive force by a police officer was caught on tape via cell phone video. Michael Joseph Gibson, 37, was drunk, yelling obscenities, and trying to start fights with passengers on a BART trains when a BART police officer went to arrest him. The passengers were relieved when the officer pulled him off the train, but were shocked to see the excessive force used by the officer. The officer not only grabbed the man without talking to him, he slammed him into the wall, and seems to have broken the glass. Check out this video for more:

This incident marks yet another time where bystanders were able to record violent police behavior. Just about everyone has a cell phone, and all the new cell phones have video capabilities. The general public are now better equipped to show what really happens and to hold police more accountable. Video is much easier to access than he said-she said testimonials. For example, it is unclear how the glass was shattered. In this video, the footage may be used to help the officer. The shattered glass injured both Gibson and the Officer. Gibson is now in Santa Rita Jail.

Many people are afraid to speak out against police violence, especially police violence. But now, to be a fair witness all you need to do is flip your cell phone open.
 

(Via: SF Gate)