The town of Fuquay-Varina has issued a statement regarding the incident that took place when a black teen was sprayed with pepper spray in his home. The incident is receiving national attention.
Police received a call indicating that an intruder had entered a home. Police arrived on the scene, entered the home and confronted 18-year old DeShawn Currie. Currie indicated that he lived in the home. Currie is black and lives with a white foster family. Allegedly, police pointed out that photos of white children in the home did not include Currie and indicated that they did not believe Currie. Currie was pepper-sprayed by police before his foster mother came home and properly identified Currie as a resident of the home.
Black Wake County Teen Pepper-Sprayed Inside Home; Police Thought He Was An Intruder
Review the statement from the town and let us know who you think is at fault in this situation.
Statement from the town of Fuqay-Varina:
A recent story on a local news channel has several in our community talking about an event responded to by the Fuquay-Varina Police Department. The purpose of this news release is to inform the public of what took place.
On Monday, October 6, Fuquay-Varina Police received a 911 call from a concerned citizen of England Avenue requesting a response to a possible burglary on the same street. The citizen expressed concern as he had never before seen the person at the home.
Police arrived at 308 England Avenue, confirmed the above information at the scene with the citizen/caller. The Fuquay-Varina Police entered the home at the garage door where the individual was seen entering the home. The Police announced their presence upon entering the garage door which was unlocked. The Police then entered an interior door which was also unlocked, and slightly open.
Believing a burglary was taking place at 308 England Avenue, the Fuquay-Varina Police entered the house, announced their presence twice and met Mr. DeShawn Currie, age 18, walking down the steps. Mr. Currie stated he lived in the home. Police tried to confirm Mr. Currie’s identity by asking for his driver’s license. Mr. Currie produced an identification that did not match the home’s address.
The police officer continued to question Mr. Currie. Mr. Currie became very volatile, profane and threatened physical violence toward the police officer. In an effort to calm Mr. Currie, the police officer asked him several times to have a seat, which he refused. Mr. Currie became increasingly belligerent and profane and the police officer attempted to restrain Mr. Currie with handcuffs to insure the police officer’s and Mr. Currie’s safety. Mr. Currie then struck the police officer’s left arm knocking the handcuffs to the floor.
The police officer then used pepper spray as a non-lethal and measured response to gain control of the situation. Medical personnel treated and released Mr. Currie at the scene within one (1) hour. No charges were filed.
Over the past two days, the Fuquay-Varina Police Department has had positive and lengthy discussions with Mr. Currie and his foster parents. The family has complained during these discussions about the use of pepper spray. Race was never mentioned as a concern during these discussions. Nonetheless, Mr. Currie has made several remarks about race to the media after the event.
The Fuquay-Varina Police Department does not engage in nor does it condone racial profiling. At no time during this event was race a factor. The Fuquay-Varina Police Department responded to a call from a concerned resident of England Avenue who had not previously seen Mr. Currie at this home.
