The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has opened a probe into the brutal arrest of a Black man who was chased into a home, where a loved one recorded as he was beaten and shocked with a Taser after alleged traffic violations.
The video begins when officers follow a man into a home in the town of Oakland, Tennessee, about 40 miles east of Memphis. One Oakland Police Department officer is swinging a baton, while another has a gun drawn, the video shows.
A woman inside the home can be heard screaming: "Stop, stop, Brandon, Brandon, stop! Stop hitting him!"
The officers chase the man upstairs into a den and begin to shock him with a Taser.
"Why are you chasing and hitting him?" the woman asks. "He has no weapons." A woman can also be heard saying: "I need to call my mom. I need to call his mom."
After a third law enforcement officer arrives, all three try to detain the man in a room. When he exits the room, his face is bloodied.
Officers tried to pull over Brandon Calloway, 25, after he drove through a stop sign, according to a police affidavit.
Calloway, who was in a gray Chevrolet Camaro, "sped away," driving 32 mph in a 20 mph zone, the affidavit said. When he did not stop, officers activated their lights, according to the document.
The officers followed Calloway to a home, where he stopped the vehicle and ran inside. "This is my ... house and I did stop for the sign," Calloway yelled as he ran, using an expletive, according to police.
Officers kicked in the front door and another door to a room that Calloway had locked himself in, police said. One officer used his Taser on Calloway and another struck him with a baton, the affidavit said. They then detained him.
He's charged with evading arrest, resisting, disorderly conduct, failing to stop at a stop sign and speeding.
In response to a request for comment, Oakland Police Chief Chris Earl said the incident was under investigation.
The TBI said it is investigating the incident at the request of 25th Judicial District Attorney General Mark Davidson.
Calloway's attorney, Andre Wharton, told WMC his client didn't know police intended to pull him over because officers didn't initially activate their sirens.
“Brandon obviously was trying to figure out what’s going on here. Why are you guys following me? I’m not violating any law,” Wharton said.
The lawyer said he is left questioning how a traffic stop "turns into head injuries, hospitalization and significant pain and suffering."
