USA: Five policemen charged with cruelty after black man paralysed in police van

In an incident that followed the cautionary tale of George Floyd's killing in the United States' Connecticut, five police officers were charged with reckless endangerment and cruelty, after a man they arrested was partially paralysed in the back of a police van.

The victim, Randy Cox, was reportedly being driven to a police station in New Haven, Connecticut, when the driver hit the brakes too hard, causing him to be flung headfirst against the van's rear doors.

Randy was reportedly being held on June 19 on gun charges that were later dropped.

The accused officers have said that the sudden brake was applied to avoid a collision at an intersection. The Police body camera footage shows the driver stopping suddenly and repeatedly honking the horn.

In the videos that later surfaced on social media, the accused police officers can be seen mocking Randy Cox, saying that he faked his injuries. He is then seen being dragged by the police officers holding his feet to place him in a holding cell. He was then transported to a hospital.

After reviewing the footage, the senior police officials in Connecticut concluded that the five officers had engaged in reckless conduct that left Cox immobile and devoid of standard physical care and related precautions during the detention.

Cox has been paralysed from the chest down, his family's lawyer said, adding it was a result of the officer's treatment. New Haven's police chief Karl Jacobson said it was important for his department to be transparent. "You can make mistakes, but you can't treat people poorly, period," he said.

"You cannot treat people the way Mr Cox was treated."

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