On Sept. 14, Alabama high school band director Johnny Mims was tased by police officers for refusing to stop their postgame stadium performance.
Minor High School, where Mims works, beat P.D. Jackson-Olin High School’s football team 27-0, and the band was celebrating with their traditional “fifth-quarter.” Prior to the game, the band directors agreed that they would play three extra songs after the game to celebrate.
Officers from the Birmingham Police Department approached Mims and told him to stop the performance so everyone could leave the stadium. Mims replied that they were on their last song, and they would be done with the performance momentarily.
As the performance ended, the stadium lights went out, and the officers tried to arrest Mims for defying their directions.
Allegedly, Mims pushed an officer, which resulted in him being tased. Mims denies that he assaulted the officer and claims that when the lights went out, he felt someone grab him and jumped as a knee-jerk reaction.
Juandalynn Givan, the lawyer representing Mims in this case, has requested that the officers involved in this incident be placed on administrative leave, calling the altercation an example of the use of excessive force.
“Without any justifiable cause, a Birmingham police officer approached the band director, escalating the situation to an unimaginable extent,’’ Givan said. “The officer deployed a taser against the band director, causing physical harm and inflicting emotional distress all while in front of his students.”
The incident has raised questions regarding the need for police reform. The incident is being referred to by many as an abuse of power by the Birmingham Police and a violation of Mims’s rights.
Matheson Sanchez, assistant professor of criminal justice with research in corrections and police reform, feels that police reform is continually necessary in any society as the world changes.
“I think reform refers to a continual striving to meet the ever-developing demands of a progressing society,” Sanchez said. “It has to be because otherwise, we’d still have police that look like slave patrols.”
One question revolves around whether police should exist as an unquestionable authority over citizens or if their role should be one of mediation and assistance. However, for many, there is no single clear answer.
“In an ideal world, we would have police that were more service-oriented and that sort of prioritized facilitating a happy and safe lifestyle for everybody, but all too often, I think we have to acknowledge the fact and be fair to police in this country that that sort of idyllic type of policing can’t always exist,” Sanchez said.
Situations of police aggression have become common headlining news in the United States. For one, the recent construction of “Cop City,” a $90 million police training complex in the Atlanta, has been met with significant backlash and protest, as many people feel it will only increase police-related violence in the surrounding neighborhoods.
Mims has been charged with disorderly conduct, harassment and resisting arrest. For the time being, he will remain on administrative leave with pay while the situation continues to be investigated.
