Screenshot of body cam
NBC News reported that Childersburg police apprehended a Black Alabama pastor on May 22 due to a call about a suspicious person in the neighborhood while he watered his neighbor’s flowers.
Pastor Michael Jennings’ arrest video was released to the public by his lawyers in hopes of legal action being taken against the officers.
In the video, an officer approached Jennings, who was visibly watering plants. The officer asked him what he was doing, and the pastor responded with “watering flowers.” The pastor was asked if the gold SUV parked in the driveway was his, and he said no. When asked if he lived in the home, Jennings told the officer he didn’t.
The law enforcer explained to Jennings that they received a call about a suspicious person and claimed the person who called said an unknown vehicle was in the driveway.
“Who’s saying that?” Jennings asked.
“They called about it. I don’t know,” the officer responded.
“I’m supposed to be here,” Jennings said. “I’m Pastor Jennings. I live across the street. I’m looking out for they house while they gone.”
The police officer requested Jennings’ identification, prompting Jenning, a former officer, to decline to provide identification since he did nothing wrong.
“You want to lock me up. Lock me up. I’m not showing y’all anything,” Jennings said. “I’m gonna continue watering these flowers…I don’t care who called y’all. Lock me up and see what happens. I want you to.”
One of the police officers explained to Jennings that he would face an obstruction charge if he continued walking away. They placed him in handcuffs, sat him down on the porch steps and yelled at him for failing to provide identification.
One of the officers asked the dispatcher to tell the person who called to come outside. Eventually, a white woman informed the officers she called the police but didn’t realize it was Jennings outside the home. She apologized to him, yet Jennings was still detained.
“The video makes it clear that these officers decided they were going to arrest Pastor Jennings less than five minutes after pulling up and then tried to rewrite history claiming he hadn’t identified himself when that was the first thing he did,” the victim’s attorney Harry Daniels said. “This was not only an unlawful arrest. It’s kidnapping. It’s irrational, irresponsible, and illegal.”
Technically, the pastor didn’t need to provide his identification because Alabama’s law has it that law enforcement can only stop a person in a public area if the person is committing a crime, about to commit one or has committed one.
The Alabama pastor faced an obstruction charge, which was dropped in June.