How much weight does video evidence carry?
That’s one of the questions that’s been buzzing about Philadelphia since Lt. Jonathan Josey, who was caught on film punching a woman, was acquitted last month.
This week’s Philadelphia City Paper offers another look at the question with the story of Askia Sabur, who was accused of assaulting a police officer, and was acquitted last month. The defense had a two-and-a-half minute long citizen-made video of the incident on its side, a video that shows cops violently beating Sabur.
In its story, the City Paper pointed out the power of citizen video:
It was […], [Sabur’s attorney Larry] Krasner says, a sign of a sea change in Philly neighborhoods, where abuse at the hands of police is often considered a regular fact of life and the idea that justice will prevail is not the general assumption.
“Next to DNA, the democratization of gathering of evidence by means of the universal camera … the cell phone … is an enormous development in terms of the potential for real justice,” Krasner tells City Paper.
Read the whole story here. Also check out its roundup of Philly police brutality videos that went viral.
Watch the Sabur video below.
http://www.youtube.com/v/vQXh-v3IZ4c?version=3&hl=en_US
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