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Los Angeles cops knock man down from wheelchair during arrest after he allegedly punched an officer

Some social media users slammed the LAPD for their behavior during a protest while others said it's not 'peaceful when a disabled man attempts to take an officer's weapon'

The Los Angeles Police Department is making headlines over the rough treatment of protesters after they threw a man down from his wheelchair to arrest him. A video captured the moment that three officers pushed Joshua Wilson onto the ground. They then grabbed him by the back of his neck and twisted his arm behind his back in order to restrain him. 

Bystanders and witnesses immediately criticized the actions of an officer who proceeded to drag the wheelchair onto the road away from Wilson. The officer also damaged the wheelchair and one of the wheels was seemingly broken. 

Authorities claimed that Wilson had punched an officer in the face while they were arresting people in an unrelated incident, according to a Daily Mail report. In the statement, the LAPD had been in the Figueroa Street And Wilshire Boulevard in Downtown LA while arresting two women and a man involved in a mental health crisis. Authorities had been taking the two women to a medical facility based on the statements that they made. It was then that they noticed a man walking down the street, pushing another man, and moved to arrest him. They came across a protest with around 50 people while carrying out the arrest. Wilson had been a part of that group. 

The LAPD posted on their official Twitter handle, "50 protesters attempted to interfere with three individuals in police custody. During the incident, a man in a wheelchair, Joshua Wilson, punched an officer in the face. Wilson, a convicted felon, was taken into custody and a loaded gun was found in his possession". The police revealed that two other individuals were also arrested from the protest, "one for battery on a peace officer and the other for a felony warrant". When protesters had started to shout chants like "Let them go" when Wilson had allegedly punched an officer. 

It was reported that Wilson was held on a $35,000 bail. The LAPD added that Wilson was checked out by medical personnel before the booking but did not reveal whether he had sustained any injuries during the altercation. They did, however, reveal that three officers and one sergeant suffered some minor injuries. The authorities shared that another man had attempted to grab an officer's baton which is when the use of force took place. The officers who were not seen wearing masks in the video proceeded to handcuff Wilson who can be heard screaming, "they're trying to kill me". The video had been posted along with the caption, "They beat us. They used excessive force".

Social media users have slammed the LAPD for their behavior and took to the comments section to say so. One such user said, "Are the police in the US really that inept that it takes 20 of them to arrest one man in a wheelchair? I suppose they need 2 cops to arrest and 18 to hold back the crowd who are disgusted at what’s going on. A******s. Make them pay for a new chair too."

"That's a good question. For 7/8 cops to feel 'threatened' enough, to gang up on ONE man in a f**king WHEELCHAIR, it makes you wonder... what made them THAT aggressive? what made them lose all of their self-control? cause... they don't seem to have ANY in this video," another wrote. There were some social media users who pointed out that Wilson had tried to grab something from the officer and the fact that he had a weapon in his backpack. "I don’t think it’s considered peaceful when a disabled man attempts to take an officer's weapon. Open your eyes hun," one user shared. The video was shared by Active Advocate which is trying to raise the bail money for Wilson.