Salisbury Citizens Dissatisfied with Salisbury Police Department Brutality Investigation

[Black Talk Radio Network™]

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By Scotty Reid

Witnesses described chaos at the La Bamba nightclub in Salisbury, North Carolina early Saturday on August 1, 2009. That night, Salisbury officer Kareem Purando stands accused of committing acts of brutality against patrons at the nightclub where officers were responding to a reported brawl at the rap concert occurring at the club. A video crew from GroundBreaking Video Productions was on hand that night to film a rap act and captured portions of the incident on video. In the video, Officer Purando is shown repeatedly punching patron John Allen Fox in the face. Officer Purando is also seen being restrained by another officer as he continued his assault on Mr. Fox. Officer Purando is accused of also choking a female patron at the La Bamba nightclub that same morning. In other video, Officer Purando seems to choke 19-year-old patron Rhea Sullivan with both his hands around her neck.

Warning Explicit Language



The Salisbury police department and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations both conducted investigations and after serving one month on paid administrative leave, Officer Purando is back on the streets. This has citizens of Salisbury and civil rights activists angry. John C. Barnette of the group True Healing Under God affiliated with Al Sharpton’s National Action Network is calling for the firing or resignation of Officer Purando. Barnette told Glenn Counts, reporter for WCNC News that “There were a lot of officers inside that particular club. There was only one causing all the problems,” in reference to Officer Purando’s actions.

At a rally against injustice held at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Salisbury, NC, on September 24, 2009, several citizens made claims that they too had been victims of violence committed by local police. Thirteen complaints of police brutality had been collected by John C. Barnette who organized the rally. One woman attending the rally said she had filed a police brutality complaint with the Salisbury police department over an incident that occurred in March of 2009. Another woman who filed a complaint said she was picked up in the air and slammed on the hood of her car during a traffic stop. Both incidents were investigated by Salisbury police investigators with no actions being taken against the accused officers.

John C. Barnette and about 100 citizens attended another rally on October 26, 2009 and residents are saying that old wounds are being opened over the decision to re-instate Officer Purando. Officer Purando was reportedly on paid administrative leave pending results of the investigations by the Salisbury police and the N.C. State Bureau of Investigations. He is now back on duty as a middle school resource officer and citizens are questioning the results of both investigations. The group True Healing Under God led by John C. Barnette are planning to attempt to speak to the Salisbury city council and said they will hold additional rallies in January. Law enforcement and local public officials refused to comment on the specifics of the investigation concerning Officer Purando. After speaking with a source today at the N.C. State Bureau of Investigations, their Independent Criminal Investigation has not concluded.