What began as a routine band performance of Talkin’ Out the Side of Your Neck by Cameo at an Alabama high school football game ended in a troubling confrontation when a police officer tased the marching band director for refusing to stop the music.
The altercation occurred Thursday around 9 p.m. local time after a game at Jackson-Olin High School in Birmingham, Ala.
Minor High School band director Johnny Mims, 39, and his ensemble of 145 students were about a minute away from being done with their final song when a police officer approached the podium. According to both Mims and the Birmingham Police Department, officers asked Mims to stop the performance so they could clear out the stadium. Mims responded that the song was about to end and the performance was agreed on by both schools.
“Nothing we were doing at the time was being a danger to the community, fans or the school,” Mims told NPR on Monday. “Everyone was enjoying themselves. That’s the part I’m having a hard time grappling with.”
As the students finished their performance, officers attempted to arrest Mims for not complying. Police said the band director “refused” to place his hands behind his back and allegedly pushed an arresting officer.
Bodycam footage is disturbing. https://youtube.com/watch?v=8nvbnvjutGA
Literally by the time they went to arrest him the band had finished their set and were ready to go. All they had to do was wait 2 minutes and they would’ve got what they wanted.
Sure, a majority of the initial conversation is unintelligible because of the band, but I seriously doubt the director said anything that provocative… if anything the officers are the ones trying to provoke a reaction out of him, and he’s just asking them to stay out of his face.
I remember back when it was just a “couple” of rotten apples, but just like in the phrase, it seems they’ve ruined the whole damn batch. Remember kids, A.C.A.B.
Even if he did, not illegal.
ACAB indeed…
Of course, but the fact he wasn’t even being aggressive/provocative towards them makes it all the more worse
We have given the police decades to reform themselves and they have refused. It doesn’t matter at this point if any are good, the entire concept needs to be rebuilt
On the bright side, all these highschool kids are learning early that ACAB.
Holy crap I’ve never seen such an unnecessarily escalated situation in my life. Just look at all the chaos going on by the end of that video, and for what, because the band needed 2 extra minutes to finish their set?