Clark County School District Police Chief Henry Blackeye speaks during a news conference on school safety at CCSD administrative offices Tuesday, March 29, 2022.
Published Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023 | 5:13 p.m.
Updated Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023 | 5:31 p.m.
The Clark County School District Police Department is forming a community committee in light of an incident last week where a school police officer slammed a Black teenager to the ground and kneeled on his back while pushing and shouting profanities at other Black youth.
CCSDPD Chief Mike Blackeye announced the new committee today while also confirming that the officer involved in the incident Thursday outside Durango High School has been reassigned.
“The department is in the process of organizing diverse community members to interface and inform school police through regular meetings to share perspectives, ideas, and results through constructive dialogue about student and staff safety on our campuses and in our facilities,” Blackeye said in a statement.
“The primary goal of the committee will be to inform and provide feedback to solve issues and concerns collectively while also providing committee members a better understanding of the operations and functions of the department. The first agenda item will be their review of the use of force policy and protocols,” he stated.
A cellphone video of the encounter started circulating on social media not long after it happened. The video, just under a minute long, shows a uniformed CCSDPD officer walking in the street to a police vehicle, detaining a boy with his hands behind his back. As he leaned the boy against the hood, another boy walked through the frame, holding out what appeared to be his own phone.
The officer then followed him, and they exchanged words, which were largely inaudible over the voices of several other people, although the second boy told the officer what sounded like “don’t touch me.” Within seconds, the officer wrapped his arms around the second boy from behind and took him to the ground, pinning him in the gutter with his knees on the boy’s back.
The officer also shoved a boy who approached and yelled “back the f— up” several times.
CCSDPD has said that officers were responding to a “report of a firearm near one of our schools” at the time. Neither the police department nor the district as a whole has said anything else about the circumstances, including the condition of the boy who was taken down, any charges, or whether a gun was recovered. However, CCSD Superintendent Jesus Jara did order Blackeye to review the department’s use of force tactics.
Also today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada announced it would be representing the Durango students.
In a statement, ACLU of Nevada Executive Director Athar Haseebullah criticized the school district and the Clark County District Attorney's Office, because the officer has not been terminated and prosecutors have not released statements saying they are investigating the officer’s conduct.
“It's sad and pathetic. It's as if these government entities only believe justice should exist for white adults and not Black children,” Haseebullah said. “If these same government entities in Nevada refuse to seek justice and accountability when an incident here is so obviously egregious and unlawful, the ACLU of Nevada will.”
Department spokesman Lt. Bryan Zink said the officer, who the department is not naming pending an ongoing internal investigation, has been reassigned to administrative duties with no contact with the public. The officer is assigned to other duties until the investigation is complete.
“A complete and thorough investigation in accordance with the law, policy and collective bargaining agreements must occur,” Blackeye said in his statement. “Anything less would be a disservice to all parties involved.”
