Holly MatkinManhattan, NY – Cell phone footage captured the moment when a New York City police officer punched a woman in the face after she attacked him while he was trying to arrest an attempted murder suspect on Tuesday (video below).
The confrontation occurred near the intersection of Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard and West 136th Street on the afternoon of Aug. 30, WABC reported.
New York City Police Department (NYPD) officers said they were attempting to arrest 22-year-old Elvin James in connection with an attempted murder when a scuffle broke out.
In addition to being wanted for his alleged role in the attempted killing, James was also found to be carrying an illegal ghost gun, police said.
Cell phone footage showed a woman barging towards police as they were taking James into custody.
The woman then shoved NYPD Detective Kendo Kinsey, who immediately punched her in her face.
The hit knocked the woman to the sidewalk, the video showed.
She was later identified as James’ girlfriend, 19-year-old Tamani Crum, WABC reported.
Additional officers picked Crum up off the ground and arrested her on charges of obstructing governmental administration, resisting arrest and assault, according to the New York Post.
But by the time she appeared in Manhattan Criminal Court on Wednesday night, Crum was facing just a single count of misdemeanor obstructing governmental administration.
She was released without bail, the New York Post reported.
Police issued a criminal court summons to a 26-year-old woman who allegedly spit at an officer during the melee.
A third woman – 27-year-old Faith Harrell – was charged with obstructing governmental administration, resisting arrest, and assaulting an officer, the New York Post reported.
Police said James was found in possession of illegal drugs and an illegal firearm at the time of his arrest on Tuesday.
He has been charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, attempted murder as a hate crime, and reckless endangerment, the New York Post reported.
Detectives Endowment Association President Paul DiGiacomo said Crum’s actions compounded an already high-risk situation.
“You know, it’s nerve-wracking situation for the detective in that this person had a loaded firearm on him,” DiGiacomo told WABC. “And this individual tried to obstruct and distract the detective from the person that was in possession of the illegal loaded firearm.”
“This could have been a travesty where members of the NYPD and civilians could have been shot by this individual, if he didn’t take the action he took,” he added.
Critics quickly blasted Det. Kinsey for striking Crum during the high-risk arrest and have demanded he be held accountable.
“He shouldn’t have never, never put his hands on her or any female, he’s wrong, he’s wrong,” Crum’s grandmother declared to WABC. “He cold knocked her out. He’s no better than the people whose knocking out people in the streets.”
Jaime Santana, Crum’s defense attorney, said the detective overreacted.
“You mean to tell me a grown man more than twice her size in weight could not handle a 19-year-old female in a different manner?” Santana said, according to WABC.
Crum’s family said they may sue over the incident.
The Detectives Endowment Association said they are considering filing their own lawsuit on Det. Kinsey’s behalf.
“Criminals in NY have grown accustomed to there being no consequences for their dangerous, illegal actions – but when you assault a New York City Detective in order to interfere with an arrest of a man armed with a gun there are repercussions,” the union said in a statement.
“As the [Detectives Endowment Association] explores a possible civil suit on behalf of our dedicated member against the woman who attacked him, we urge politicians to open their eyes and see the public safety disaster they’ve created.”
An NYPD spokesperson told the New York Post that Det. Kinsey had not been disciplined in connection with the incident as of Wednesday afternoon.
Det. Kinsey has served the NYPD for the past 17 years, the Daily Beast reported.
The Bronx native served eight years in the U.S. Marine Corps prior to joining the NYPD, the department said in a Facebook post in 2016.
According to the Citizen Complaint Review Board, he has had six complaints filed against him during his career.
The complaints were all filed between 2014 and 2018, the Daily Beast reported.
Two of the six complaints were substantiated.
Det. Kinsey was not disciplined for a substantiated complaint of discourtesy, but he was disciplined for a substantiated complaint of abuse of authority, according to the Daily Beast.
Watch the incident unfold in the video below. Warning – Graphic Content and Obscene Language:
He has ZERO business being a police officer & should be fired immediately. @ericadamsfornyc do you have the moral courage to publicly condemn this ? You can’t be #BackTheBlue regardless if they are right or wrong. That’s not leadership pic.twitter.com/rMF5KtbzVK
— Etan Thomas (@etanthomas36) August 31, 2022
