‘He Had It Pointed Up at Me’: Indiana Teen Accused of Trying to Shoot Cop Walks Free After Body-camera Footage Exposes Officer’s Lie
Despite her actions being recorded on bodycam, Indianapolis Police Sgt. Robyn Frazier falsely claimed last month a Black teen pointed a gun at her, landing him in jail on attempted murder charges that could have sent him to prison.
Indianapolis police then further pushed the false narrative that Dailen Brewer, 18, “appeared to point a revolver in her direction,” according to a Facebook post the day after the April 12 incident.
“Brewer made a gesture like he pulled the trigger, but the gun did not fire,” police claimed in the Facebook post on April 13, allegations repeated by the national media, which Brewer says led to him losing his job.
“He looked down at his gun as if he were surprised by this. The Sergeant drew her own gun and ordered Brewer to open the car door, which he did. He then dropped the revolver and raised both hands.”
But then the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office dismissed the case four days after his arrest on April 16 after viewing the bodycam video and determining there were “evidentiary problems” – sparking outrage in the city’s Black community.
“Body-worn camera footage does not support the allegations in the probable cause affidavit,” the prosecutor’s office stated, according to WRTV.
Cop Insists Body-camera Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story
But Indianapolis police still insisted he pointed a gun at her, claiming in a statement to local media on April 17 that “body-worn cameras, while valuable tools, only capture a portion of an officer’s field of view and do not capture everything experienced by an officer.”
However, that narrative fell apart on April 19 when police released the bodycam video to the public, sparking more outrage from the public.
“One would think putting false information on probable cause paperwork would be a crime or grounds for termination,” said one commenter on the news report posted on the IndyStar’s Instagram page.
“This is crazy. The officer needs to face severe consequences for LYING on that young brotha,” said another commenter.
“Seems like reviewing the cam footage would be the FIRST thing that should have been done, but what do I know?” added another.
Watch the video below.
‘Do Not F—ing Move’
The bodycam video shows Frazier, a 17-year veteran with the police department, pulling into Riverside Park in response to a “suspicious vehicle” call.
She pulls up to the park and walks up to a red car where Brewer is sitting in the driver’s seat with a friend sitting in the passenger seat and orders him to open the door – which was when she claimed he pointed a gun at her.
“Brewer raised the revolver, then dropped the gun and raised both hands,” she wrote in the probable cause affidavit, according to IndyStar.
In court documents reviewed by IndyStar, police wrote that “Sgt. Frazier could see an AR-style gun between Brewer’s legs and a revolver next to his left foot.”
The video shows that Brewer had his hands up when he opened the door but also shows a black object between his legs that may or may not be a gun. His passenger also appears to have a gun between his legs.
At one point, he lowers his left hand and she pulls out her gun and points it at him.
“Do not f—ing move,” she says.
Cop Acts As Though Life Was in Danger
Brewer keeps his hands raised until more cops arrive, then steps out of the car as officers handcuff him.
“He had it pointed up at me,” Frazier tells another sergeant who then tries to console her.
“OK. Are you OK? Are you OK?” her colleague asks. “Take a breath. Take a breath.”
But Brewer’s version of the incident was much more in line with the video evidence.
“As soon as she got up to the car, I didn’t touch anything,” he told IndyStar.
“As soon as she said, ‘raise your hands,’ I raised my hands. I didn’t touch nothing at all. And then she said step out the car. I might as well comply.”
But the media ran with the police version of the narrative, reporting that he was initially charged with multiple felonies, including attempted murder, intimidating an officer, resisting law enforcement where a weapon is drawn and two counts of pointing a firearm.
Court records show he was facing a single felony charge of pointing a firearm at another prior to the case being dismissed.
“It doesn’t feel right,” Brewer told local media.
“Police can say anything, and everybody goes along with it, because they’re the police. I wouldn’t point a gun at a cop.”
Also, Indiana allows citizens to carry guns without permits if they have no felony convictions or certain misdemeanor domestic abuse convictions – and court records show Brewer has no prior arrests.
“If carrying guns were such a problem in today’s world, why would this state pass such laws to make them more accessible?” Brewer’s mother, Delores Brewer, told local media.