The mayor of Dover held a community meeting Tuesday to hear from the community after a controversial video of police officers making an arrest came to light.
The video depicts a confrontation between 19-year-old Cyprian Luke and several Dover police officers on May 19. Luke was wanted on aggravated assault charges. Officers tracked him down and tried to arrest him. Video recorded by Luke’s friend shows the officers have Luke on the ground and one appears to punch him multiple times, causing some injuries.
The officers say that Luke was resisting arrest.
The video of the incident angered the community, prompting Mayor James Dodd to call the community meeting. Dodd says that he wants to hear the community’s’ concerns and to start a dialogue between the police department and the residents of the town.
Warning: The following video may be disturbing for some viewers.
Some Dover residents say that they are calling for the officers to be fired and they also want all Dover police officers to be equipped with body cameras. Mayor Dodd says that body cameras are in the budget and should be equipped later this year.
The officers have been placed on leave while the Morris County prosecutor and New Jersey attorney general investigate the incident.