For Immediate Release
Jan. 6, 2023
OUPD Releases Community Incident Briefing Video Following Arrest at Football Game
NORMAN, OKLA. – The University of Oklahoma Police Department has released a community incident briefing video related to an arrest that occurred during an OU football game on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022.
The video includes body camera footage from the two OUPD officers equipped with body cameras who responded to the scene of Case No. 22-1674.
“OUPD is committed to transparency in our operations and administration. The release of this community incident briefing video is intended to show the community exactly what took place during an arrest at the Bedlam football game,” said OU Police Department Chief Nate Tarver. “The use of body cameras by OUPD officers allowed us to more comprehensively assess what took place during this incident.”
The community incident briefing video is available here: link.ou.edu/case-22-1674
Immediately following the incident, and as standard protocol with any incident involving use of force, OUPD began conducting an investigation to determine whether officers’ actions were justified.
Following a review by the OUPD and by non-OUPD use of force instructors, a determination was made that the officers maintained appropriate protocols and no officer used excessive force.
“A close review of the video shows us that, although the situation was unpredictable, officers acted quickly to keep a highly agitated and possibly intoxicated suspect, all students and bystanders, as well as themselves, safe,” Tarver said. “Nevertheless, even when standard policing protocols are satisfied, we hold ourselves at OUPD to a higher standard. Any officers working on our university grounds are not just agents of the law but stewards of the well-being and security for all of those on campus. In all cases, once a suspect is subdued and in a controlled area, officer responsibilities should provide for the well-being of the suspect, and in this instance, we believe that one officer failed to observe the suspect’s rapidly changing physical condition as he lapsed into temporary unconsciousness during the dynamic situation fell short of that. OUPD will look to this as a training moment. Our goal is that officers present on our campus conduct themselves with the utmost professionalism at all times. As for the subject officer, any disciplinary action is considered a confidential personnel matter.”
Chief Tarver’s full statement on the incident and follow-up investigation is below.
For purposes of clarity, OUPD defines “force” as the application of physical techniques or tactics, chemical agents or weapons to another person. It is not a use of force when a person allows him/herself to be searched, escorted, handcuffed or restrained.
About the Incident (Case No. 22-1674):
During the University of Oklahoma football game on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022, police officers working the event, including those with the OU Police Department, were called to the east side of Gaylord Family - Oklahoma Memorial Stadium to assist with crowd control to ensure fan safety.
For large campus events, including football game days, officers from OUPD and other metro and regional agencies are on-site to ensure the safety of those in attendance.
Officers began working to clear the aisles and control the flow of fans entering the bowl at stadium ramps. The defendant refused to leave the aisle, assaulted a non-OUPD officer and resisted arrest. Although the defendant was in the student section of the stadium (Sections 26-30), the game ticket he later provided to OUPD was for Section 11. It was later determined that the defendant was last enrolled at the University of Oklahoma in the fall of 2020.
To help resolve the situation as quickly as possible, and to ensure the safety of all involved, a number of officers from the OUPD, as well as several other law enforcement agencies, responded to the scene. Two of the OUPD officers on scene were equipped with body cameras. The community incident briefing video shows the body camera video from these two officers, beginning from just before they observed the incident involving the defendant.
As seen in the video, the defendant actively resisted arrest as officers struggled to take him into custody in the aisle. A team of officers worked to control the defendant’s limbs to minimize the risk of injury to himself and others, and to take him into custody as quickly and safely as possible.
Once officers managed to place handcuffs on the defendant, he was brought to his feet and taken into custody inside the stadium. Upon entering a holding area inside the stadium, officers instructed the defendant to sit on a bench. He suddenly became combative again and continued to resist.
To limit the risk of anyone being injured, an officer instructed others to clear a space so he could move the defendant to the ground – a flat surface away from the hard edges of the bench. Immediately prior to the defendant being moved, he suddenly went unconscious for an unknown reason. The officer moving the defendant did not realize this until several seconds later.
Officers immediately called for paramedics and moved the defendant into a seated position as he quickly began to regain consciousness. Paramedics transported the defendant to Norman Regional Hospital for evaluation.
Later that evening, the defendant was taken to the Cleveland County Detention Center, having been arrested for assault and battery on a police officer, resisting arrest, public intoxication, and resisting/obstruction of an officer.
The video also includes footage of the non-OUPD officer who was assaulted by the defendant giving an account of the incident that led to the defendant’s arrest. The officer who was assaulted by the defendant, and this officer’s partner, both of whom are from other law enforcement agencies, were not equipped with body cameras.
OUPD currently owns 10 body camera units. For a typical (non-game day) shift, this covers all OUPD officers on that shift. However, a football game necessitates much more than 10 officers, so it is not possible for all to be equipped with a body camera.
Statement from OU Police Department Chief Nate Tarver:
“As of early 2022, the OUPD is fortunate to now have access to body camera footage; it keeps both our officers and the public safer. In this case, the body cameras performed exactly as intended, and I commend the officers involved for making sure their cameras were turned on as soon as they came upon the incident. The good news is that we know exactly what happened; the bad news is that arrest videos in real life are rarely pretty or perfect, and this arrest was no exception. A close review of the video shows us that, although the situation was unpredictable, officers acted quickly to keep a highly agitated and possibly intoxicated suspect, all students and bystanders, as well as themselves, safe. The suspect’s physical and verbal behavior escalated this situation, and officers followed the appropriate protocols to keep him from further injuring himself on hard surfaces and sharp corners as he fought those who were trying to seat and calm him.
“Immediately following the incident, and as standard protocol with any incident involving use of force, we conducted an investigation designed to determine whether any officer’s actions were unjustified uses of policing power. Following review of this incident by the OUPD and by non-OUPD use of force instructors, a determination was made that the officers maintained appropriate protocols and no officer used excessive force. Nevertheless, even when standard policing protocols are satisfied, we hold ourselves at OUPD to a higher standard. Any officers working on our university grounds are not just agents of the law but stewards of the well-being and security for all of those on campus. In all cases, once a suspect is subdued and in a controlled area, officer responsibilities should provide for the well-being of the suspect, and in this instance, we believe that one officer failed to observe the suspect’s rapidly changing physical condition as he lapsed into temporary unconsciousness during the dynamic situation fell short of that. OUPD will look to this as a training moment. Our goal is that officers present on our campus conduct themselves with the utmost professionalism at all times. As for the subject officer, any disciplinary action is considered a confidential personnel matter.”
