FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Lee County NAACP president, James Muwakkil, believes two young men arrested following a Fort Myers traffic stop disobeyed police commands and sparked the confrontation. However, the families disagree with this assessment.
Fort Myers Police Department released dash cam and body camera video of E'zarius Lockwood and Easter Alexander's interaction with an officer during a traffic stop that began over what Chief Jason Fields described as an "unlawful use of a horn."
Despite advocating for the teens earlier in the investigation, Muwakkil acknowledged they didn't follow police instructions.
"We're saying that they initiated it, they started it. They disobeyed law enforcement commands on number of occasions," Muwakkil said.
When asked how he knew this, Muwakkil responded: "We saw it in the video and some of the body cam."
Muwakkil says he has received harsh criticism for his newfound stance on the issue after seeing the body and dash camera video.
"People need to understand that the NAACP, it's not a black thing. It's a civil rights organization. The most powerful in the world. We are on the side of justice, not your skin color. We know our history with law enforcement," Muwakkil said.
However, Muwakkil expressed concerns about whether there was a need for an officer to draw a gun and the level of force used throughout the traffic stop.
The police video shows one of the teens allegedly grabbing the officer and includes footage of a taser being deployed during the incident.
"We have not said, nor will we say, that the officer did nothing wrong," Muwakkil said.
"He sat on the boy's back with his knee. We don't know whether that was necessary. So do we think that perhaps he may have been excessive," Muwakkil said.
The two young men, ages 18 and 19, were arrested, and one of them was charged with battery of a law enforcement officer, and both of them were charged with resisting arrest.
When asked if he witnessed any battery on a law enforcement officer in the video, Muwakkil responded: "No, I've not seen no battery on no law enforcement officer."
"We're asking the chief of the FMPD to help go to bat for them to get these charges removed so that their hopes and dreams will not be barricaded, blocked, so that they could still have the widest range of hope that a youth should have at their age," Muwakkil said.
Chief Jason Fields released the department's video on Wednesday, stating that the viral video circulating for the past two weeks showed only a portion of what happened.
"This is the same video I showed to the two young men involved in the traffic stop along with their family members, and the NAACP. My intention for releasing this additional video footage is to dispel misinformation and allow our community to see the full picture of what occurred during the traffic stop. I asked for the community's patience and understanding as we continue our review process," Fields said.
Now that the video is public, the NAACP is asking Chief Fields to advocate for dropping the charges against the young men.
"This is a teachable moment. This does not have to be a punishment moment. We are appealing to State Attorney Amira Fox to please consider that one is 18, one is 19. They still got their life in front of them. Let's not mess that up," Muwakkil said.
Muwakkil also wants the chief to visit the Dunbar community to educate residents on interacting with law enforcement, even when they believe they haven't committed any crimes.
Alexander's grandmother expressed displeasure with the NAACP president's position. Following the second meeting with Chief Fields, Lockwood's mother also stated she disagrees with both the police report and the NAACP's position.
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