'Appalling' video shows NYPD officers wrenching baby from mother’s arms

Video of officers struggling to arrest woman and remove one-year-old boy from her arms sparks outrage and an investigation

Erin Durkin in New York
Mon 10 Dec 2018 16.50 GMT Last modified on Mon 10 Dec 2018 18.03 GMT

A video of New York police officers wrenching a baby from his mother’s arms has sparked outrage and an investigation by the NYPD.

The video shows the woman lying on the floor of a Brooklyn benefits office as several officers struggle to arrest her and remove the one-year-old boy from her arms, as she cries out, “You’re hurting my son.”

At one point, an officer pulls out a Taser and waves it at a crowd of onlookers objecting to the police actions. Eventually the woman, 23-year-old Jazmine Headley, is dragged to her feet and removed in handcuffs.

“This is unacceptable, appalling and heartbreaking,” said the New York City council speaker, Corey Johnson. “I’d like to understand what transpired and how these officers or the NYPD justifies this. It’s hard to watch this video.”

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There were no seats available, so the mother sat on the floor in a corner, according to witness Monae Sinclair, who posted the video on Facebook. A security guard told her to stand, and when she refused, called police.

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