Milwaukee police chief: Officers acted 'inappropriately' while arresting Bucks player Sterling Brown

Sterling Brown.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales said on Wednesday that officers who used a stun gun on Milwaukee Bucks player Sterling Brown in January "acted inappropriately" and have been disciplined.

Morales released 30 minutes of body camera footage showing the incident, which began in the early hours of Jan. 26 in front of a Walgreens. The video shows an officer approach Brown, whose car appears to be parked so it takes up three spaces. After a few minutes, they begin arguing, and more police cars drive up. Brown is heard asking what is going on, and eight minutes in, he's told to take his hands out of his pockets. An officer is then heard yelling, "Taser! Taser! Taser!" Officers are later seen looking through Brown's car, and one is heard telling another, "He was being an ass and trying to hide something."

Brown was arrested, but criminal charges were never filed. The Bucks released a statement supporting Brown, calling the incident "shameful and inexcusable," and Brown, who plans on suing the department, said the experience "has forced me to stand up and tell my story so that I can help prevent these injustices from happening in the future." Morales apologized for the incident, saying he was sorry it "escalated to this level."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.