Yvonna Russell: Delicious Diva Sasha Allen
ESPN baseball writer Howard Bryant's arrest has now taken a very interesting turn: Buz Eisenberg, Bryant's attorney, claims that race was a factor in his arrest:
''Mr. Bryant was the victim of excessive force,'' Eisenberg said, according to Recorder.com. ''Police responded to the scene and rather than do an investigation, they made an arrest of a black man with a white wife."
Bryant, who is 42 years old, was charged with domestic assault and battery as well as battery on a police officer. Five witnesses claim that they saw the writer choke his wife and force her in to a car. He was freed on $5,000 bail on the same day.
Since the arrest, some things have changed.
Bryant's wife, Veronique Bryant, is now claiming that Bryant never assaulted her. Thus far, ESPN has declined to comment.
The arrest of Howard Bryant is certainly interesting. On one hand, there is the strong possibility that police overreacted. We know that there is an abundance of evidence that officers are more aggressive toward African Americans.
We also live in a nation where lynch mobs taunted O.J. Simpson for nearly 20 years, after he was accused of hurting a white female. With Bryant also having a white wife, these allegations are certainly worthy of an investigation.
We also know, however, that there is a huge incentive on the part of Bryant's attorneys to play the race card.
After all, getting arrested for domestic assault is not exactly going to bolster Bryant's career at ESPN. There are five witnesses who claim to have seen him assaulting his wife, and unless it can be proven that they have an incentive to lie, I am not readily inclined to believe that this arrest was racially motivated.
Also, I would speculate that advocates against domestic violence, like Sil Lai Abrams, might say that Mrs. Bryant's pleas for her husband's innocence could be symptomatic of Battered Woman's Syndrome.
Quite a few women are beaten senseless by their husbands and then refuse to cooperate with authorities, utilizing large amounts of taxpayer money in the process. Unfortunately, many of these women end up dead, which is why the police have an obligation to thoroughly investigate.
Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here. To follow Dr. Boyce on Facebook, please click here. 
Comments: (48)
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By: ooozzzzz on 3/01/2011 4:40PM
From a alternate news source:
"In an interview with The Republican, Bryant, who is black, and his wife Veronique Bryant, who is white, both insisted that police used unnecessary force while arresting Bryant after what they described as a verbal argument in front of Buckland Pizza in Shelburne Falls. The couple, who live in Ashfield, said some customers in the pizza parlor saw the argument and called police.
" 'It wasn’t an assault or a battery,' said Veronique Bryant. 'I was not scared. He was not touching me. We had a discussion. The police reacted in a totally inappropriate way.'
"Veronique Bryant added that she did not press charges against her husband.
"Howard Bryant, who appeared in court wearing a scarf from the Vancouver Olympics, which he covered for ESPN, acknowledged that he lost his temper in what he termed a 'public altercation,' saying he embarrassed his community, his family and his employer."
" 'On the other hand, everything the police said was false,' Bryant added."
According to Bryant, he and his wife were in their car with their six-year-old son when state and local police arrived. They told him to get out of the car and ordered him to take his hands out of his pockets, even though they were not in his pockets, he said.
“I raised my hands over my head so they wouldn’t shoot me,” Bryant said. “They smashed my head on the car and pulled my sweatshirt hood up over my head.”
When Bryant insisted that he was not resisting arrest, an officer asked him if he wanted to be "Tasered," he said. The couple said they were especially distraught because the incident took place in front of their son.
According to police, witnesses reported that Bryant choked his wife and pushed her into a car.
They said Bryant struck a trooper in the chest with his elbow during the three minutes it took to subdue him.
“One conversation would have stopped it all,” Bryant said.
http://www.theroot.com/blogs/richard-prince-journal-isms/espn-writer-alleges-racism-after-arrest
http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2011/02/lawyer_claims_racism_in_arrest.html#incart_hbx
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If this situation started in the mall as a verbal confrontation and he did not put his hands on her. they left the mall, then got into the car together with their child, that means that whoever made the call to the police followed them from the mall into the mall parking lot and readily told the police exactly where they were going knowing full well that he never touched her and that person also knew that since she did not notify anyone else that she was in any danger, then that tells you that they were together, there was a child with them and he did not force her to go with him.
The caller on the phone was wrong to the police and first, lie about the situation and purposely described the situation as a danger to her when it clearly wasn't and the police should have accessed the situation with both he, his wife and child in the car.
Common sense will tell you that if two people are having an open argument and leave together in the same car, then it's not anaggressive situation that requires unnecessary force.
"Five witnesses claim that they saw the writer choke his wife and force her into a car."
I am not buying that either.
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By: Mrs. Mercedes Benz on 3/01/2011 7:11PM
When an argument occurs and it appears serious to an individual, then they have every right to intervene, or call the police. They don't know if it will escalate into something deadly; especially if children are involved. It's better to be safe than sorry. Too many times we turn our heads and pretend too see or hear nothing. I could choose to ignore it as well, but my conscience wouldn't let me.
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By: G REDD on 3/02/2011 2:10AM
I AM WONDERING WHY NONE OF THE FIVE PEOPLE WHO ALLEGEDLY SAW MR. BRYANT CHOKING HIS WIFE TRIED TO INTERVENE IN HER BEHALF!!!! I AM SHOCKED THAT NOBODY MANAGED TO GET ANY OF THIS INCIDENT ON A CELL PHONE CAMERA. I AM ALMOST SURE THEY HAD THEM!!!
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By: Mark on 3/01/2011 5:01PM
Boyce, you are a bigger douchebag than i thought. Lynch mobs taunted O.J. Simpson for nearly twenty years after HURTING(?) a white female?? Comments like that are exactly why you can't be taken serious. Only 5 witnesses saw Bryant choke his wife and put her in the car? What did you get your degree in? Douchebagery? You must have pulled that diploma out of a box of Crackerjacks.
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By: Al on 3/01/2011 5:17PM
Aol has a very low bar for writers. The main requirement, be able to piss people off and get them to comment because comments equal ratings. Don't let this man get you stirred up, it isn't worth it.
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By: Ru on 3/02/2011 12:06AM
TRUTH THAT. MORE REAL ISSUES THAN ONE THAT SLEEPS WITH THE ENEMY. YES I SAID IT. THE CREATOR IS SHOWING OUR EVILNESS, CORRUPTION, AND INHUMAN DESTRUCTION OF EARTH, AIR AND WATER. LET'S RIGHT WHAT IS WRONG. LEAVE OJ'S WHERE THEY ARE. PEACE TO BE. DO. HAVE. THAT TRUTH
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By: truth on 3/01/2011 5:25PM
According to any Negro, they never do anything wrong. If they get caught, well, than it's "racism".
This is the same whine that OJ used, since he's a Negro, he can literally get away with murder because to convict him would be "racism".
More and more whites are waking up to this scam of yours, and are disgusted by it.
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By: stare k on 3/02/2011 3:52PM
To truth you all are a lying DOUCHBAG .The acid lady , THE REAL CHRISTIAN NUN , SUSAN SMITH , just to name a few lying on blacks . I'am sure if he was chocking her those 5 officers would have beat ,kicked him & every thing that they thought of.
That is all you white racist try to do is set blacks /lie on them .lying traailer trash douchbag.
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By: mundy on 3/03/2011 4:54AM
You talk about rasism, who says negro anymore and the appropriate to say is black. I know that lacks have been wrong and done their dirt in the past but noe everyone black is a criminal nor wrong and we as americans realistically know that white policemen and whites overall have done their dirt as well so stop the nonsense and think people. We all know couples who have loud arguments and no one dies, black or white. We are to quick to condemn.
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By: uub140 on 3/01/2011 5:33PM
Police must beware of black rage, and the possibility of contracting AIDS from a suspect. These are conditions we have brought upon ourselves by drug use and prositution.
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