Kansas City Woman Says She Suffered Memory Loss After Violent Arrest Caught on Video
‘I WAS NO THREAT’
A woman said police used excessive force while arresting her during an incident at a bar in the Power & Light neighborhood in Kansas City, which left her with a concussion, swollen eye, bruised face and memory loss, according to The Kansas City Star. A video recorded by a bystander showed police officers in the process of arresting 25-year-old Daysheion Renee Ponds, when one pressed her face into the ground and another put his knees on the back of her legs, pinning her to the ground. “If you act like an animal, we’re going to treat you like an animal,” one of the officers yelled. One of the officers swore at the bystander recording the incident, and threatened to arrest him. Ponds was then taken into the bar’s office, where she can be heard screaming in the video. “I’m 5’2” and I’m under 150 pounds,” Ponds told the Star. “I was no threat, I couldn’t have hurt them in any way and the whole time that they were hitting on me and beating me. I was in handcuffs, so I couldn’t have done anything extreme to them.” The charges against Ponds allege that she stole a drink, screamed obscenities at the bar’s manager, jumped over the bar, kicked an officer in the head, and bit him on the leg. Ponds claims that she cannot recall the sequence of events due to memory loss from the altercation, but said that she was charged for a drink she did not order or receive, and that her debit card was declined.