California Teens Swarm Off-Duty Cop, Choke Him Until He Nearly Passes Out
A woman at a busy shopping center in California on Black Friday accused a group of teenagers of stealing her cellphone, only to be assaulted by a member of the group in response.
When an off-duty police officer stepped in to render assistance, however, that is when the violence really escalated.
Fox News reported that the incident, which was caught on surveillance camera footage, took place around 8 p.m. Friday at the Bay Street Mall in Emeryville near Oakland, California.
An unidentified woman wearing a white jacket approached the group of teens and reportedly demanded the return of her cellphone, which she believed they had stolen from her.
In response to the accusation, the woman was shoved and confronted by at least one member of the group. It was at that point that an off-duty California Highway Patrol officer — who has only been identified as Greg B. — approached the scene and appeared to try and offer the woman some assistance.
When she pointed out the teen who had shoved her repeatedly, he took out his own cellphone and began to surreptitiously take pictures of her assailant.
He was spotted taking the pictures by a female in the group, however. That prompted the males in the group to suddenly launch a vicious assault on the off-duty officer, hitting him with countless punches, kicking him and choking him nearly to the point of unconsciousness.
“It was a melee. It was chaotic. It was a really scary situation,” Greg B. told local Fox affiliate KUTV-TV. “It should have never gotten to this point.”
He attempted to run away from the group but was unable to escape, as he became surrounded and was besieged by punches at every turn.
“But I know that when I let him go, he’s going to swing at me. And I let him go. I push him and sure enough, he turns around and swings at me,” he said, describing the concerted attack. “I back up and that’s when one of his friends came up behind me and struck me in the back of the head.”
Security guards attempted to intervene but were initially unsuccessful. Eventually, Greg B.’s girlfriend informed the security guards that he was an off-duty police officer.
“I was exhausted afterward and mentally exhausted,” the former correctional officer, who was armed but refrained from pulling his weapon, said. “There was a lot of restraint that had to be practiced. And I had to do my best to stay in the moment.”
He reportedly suffered a concussion, a broken finger and several bruises in the violent altercation.
Greg B. said this was the third time he has felt compelled to step in and provide assistance to somebody at that mall.
“I think this just came down to me not being able to look away and let this happen,” Greg B. said. “I saw this young lady and she was going to be in a very bad situation.”
According to NBC Bay Area, two juveniles, ages 14 and 16, have been arrested for their role in the assault on the off-duty officer.
The video of the incident was released to the public in the hope that others may be able to identify other members of the group so they could be held accountable.
As horrible as this particular mob violence incident may be, it is sadly not an isolated event and is increasingly becoming the norm in this day and age.
Sadly, a culture has taken hold among our society that shows little to no respect to adults, much less to authority figures such as law enforcement officers, and it’s no longer shocking to see a mob of angry teenagers launch a violent assault with minimal provocation.
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