Elected officials pepper-sprayed at Downtown protest slam report on Columbus police actions
Franklin County Commissioner Kevin Boyce led another in a series of virtual town hall discussions Wednesday on issues affecting the local community, and guests Congresswoman Joyce Beatty and City Council President Shannon Hardin were asked to describe 2020 in one word.
Beatty, whose 3rd Congressional District encompasses a large sector of Columbus, described 2020 as "explosive."
She pointed to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, resulting in global outrage.
Hardin followed with the word "anxiety," a feeling he said has permeated throughout the United States as many fear how the country will handle the deadly virus, increased violence and the forthcoming election.
"There's this level of anxiety amongst all of us because of the pressure this year has put on us," Hardin said.
The virtual town hall is a part of a weekly series alternately headed by Boyce and Commissioner John O'Grady aimed at addressing national and community-focused topics.
Wednesday's event was a reunion of sorts for Boyce, Beatty and Hardin, three elected Democratic officials who were pepper-sprayed May 30 during one of many protests in Downtown Columbus that erupted after the death of Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police officers.
Boyce raised the incident during the town hall discussion, stating that he, Beatty and Hardin were wrongfully pepper-sprayed while rallying in support of the city's protesters.
"It opened our eyes, literally, to what's going on," Hardin said, adding that he was directly pepper-sprayed in the face by a Columbus police officer.
Beatty said she was trying to separate an officer and a protester when she got caught between both groups and got sprayed.
A complaint was filed with the city, with the three elected officials alleging that Columbus police officers used excessive force during the incident. Boyce was interviewed by BakerHostetler, the city law firm hired to investigate complaints against police during protests in the city.
The officers involved in the incident with Boyce, Beatty and Hardin were determined to have been in compliance with the Columbus Division of Police use-of-force policy.
After being briefed on the findings of the investigation, Hardin said the words "facts of the case" in the BakerHostetler report sent chills down his spine. He said there were elements listed as facts that didn't happen and helped lead to the officers' exonerations.
"To me it was very misleading," Beatty said of the BakerHostetler report. "It was very incomplete, very biased and it was very much a conflict. It isn't about me in any way, I just don't agree. And that was my story and my facts of the case."
Despite the outcome, Beatty said she's glad she, Hardin and Boyce took action and joined the other protesters in solidarity.
"I think we got in 'good trouble,'" Beatty said, using the words of the late John Lewis, a civil rights leader and Democratic congressman from Georgia, who was describing how he was moved by the nationwide protests for racial justice after Floyd's death.
Boyce said the pepper-spray incident sparked a larger conversation about the city police division's use-of-force policy. The commissioner said other resources and tactics should be discussed to address these situations.
"Our sacrifice for that pain, for that moment and that day ... is it exposes a conversation on the need for the use of force," Boyce said. "When is it needed, why is it needed, how is it needed, what are we deploying in these kind of situations?"
During the town hall, Beatty also voiced how importance it is for residents of the Columbus area to complete and send in their U.S. Census Bureau forms. She pointed out how federal funding is based in part on Census counts, and those who do not participate hurt themselves and the community in reduced funding, among other things.
"This is a time we can have a win-win," Beatty said.