Phillip White's family agonizes about what happened to a son, brother or father. It's a slap in the face when law enforcement should be doing all it can to restore community trust.
After one year and 17 days -- an eternity from the perspective of Phillip White's family -- the Cumberland County Prosecutor's Office has not released the results of the investigation into White's death.
White, 32, was taken into custody by members of the Vineland Police Department on March 31, 2015, because he reportedly was "acting strangely and yelling in the street." The encounter was captured on cell phone video by several witnesses. White is not seen armed with any type of weapon. His death was ruled as having been caused by respiratory distress.
One video shows White face down in the street with a police officer straddling his back while punching him repeatedly, then telling a police dog to "sic him." The officer allowed the dog to bite repeatedly while maintaining a superior position on top of White. Witnesses are heard in the background shouting that White is unconscious and to call off the dog. I found it strange that during the video, White does not move nor utter a word.
Conscious human beings have an instinctive reaction to aggressive dogs. They will fight or flee, and most certainly yell or scream after getting bitten. Phillip White showed no visible reaction to anything happening to him, a strong indicator that he was, as the witnesses claim, unconscious.
To punch and then sic a police dog on a helpless man who is offering no resistance is reminiscent of what South African police did to Kaffirs during the Apartheid era. White's family, as well as the community, should know why he was arrested and how he wound up on the ground seemingly unconscious. They deserve to why the officer was sitting on top of White, striking him with his fist, when there was no apparent resistance. Why was the dog sent in to bite? Was the force that was used justifiable?
The failure to release any of this information serves to fuel suspicion of a cover-up and further heightens tension between the community and law enforcement in Cumberland County. What in the world could anyone still be investigating?
I state with conviction that if a law enforcement officer had unfortunately been injured by someone else, this case would not be dragging on. It would be given the attention it deserved, and rightfully so. Phillip White deserves the exact same professionalism and consideration. As William E. Gladstone said, "Justice delayed is justice denied." White's worth should not be undervalued nor have his life marginalized by investigators who may be stalling for time, and hoping that people will forget and move on.
Meanwhile, White's family agonizes about what happened to a son, brother or father. This is a slap in the face to the community at a time when law enforcement should be doing all it can to restore public trust.
Phillip White was African-American. There is reason to believe the criminal justice system in this nation is broken into two segments, one for whites and another for everyone else. If officials desire those in the black community to trust the police and partner with them, they truly must make justice blind. "White privilege" must be eliminated. Unfortunately, when race, ethnicity and culture intersect with law enforcement, different results are the norm.
Officials have justified use the of lethal police force in the "choke-hold" case of Eric Garner, unarmed and selling loose cigarettes in New York City, and in the case of Tamir Rice, just a kid playing in a Cleveland park with a replica pellet gun. The jury is still out in the case of Freddie Gray, who died of injuries a year ago in the back of a Baltimore police van.
And, Phillip White loses his life under very suspicious circumstances.
Compare these cases to that of Dylann Roof, a white shooter who entered a predominantly black Charleston, S.C., church, and is charged with murdering nine worshippers. When police tracked him down, they brought him back alive and unharmed. News reports say they stopped at Burger King and bought the suspect a Whopper and fries -- because he was hungry.
Those officers apprehending Roof acted courteously, and no lethal force was used. What happens to this "Officer Friendly" mind set when the suspect is an unarmed black man?
Milton W. Hinton Jr. is director of equal opportunity for the Gloucester County government. He is past president of the Gloucester County Branch NAACP. His column states his personal views, not those of any organization or agency. Email: mwhjr678@gmail.com.