*Jamar Mackey, the man who was detained by Virginia Beach police after being wrongly accused of credit card fraud, called the experience of being handcuffed in front of his fiancée and son “dehumanizing” during an appearance Tuesday on “Good Morning America.”
“Basically we were just sitting down, enjoying the holidays, trying to get some lunch with my family. Next thing you know, I’m in handcuffs,” Mackey said. “No words, no explanations.”
After officers perp-walked Mackey out of the Lynnhaven Mall, they eventually realized that Mackey was not their suspect and explained to him that he fit the description – of a Black man with dreads, wearing all black and with a child wearing red – who was using stolen credit cards.
“It’s like, how is it nothing changed?,” Mackey said on GMA. “How is everything still the same? How do you still racial profile a black man with dreads that way in 2020? How do you do that? It’s still happening this day.”
Police Chief Paul Neudigate apologized for the incident, saying “Certainly, anyone would be upset about being detained for something they didn’t do. While the video shows the officer stayed calm and respectful throughout the brief encounter, we must ensure the situation merits the response. We are gathering all the facts to evaluate the incident so we can address the concerns people have raised.”
Watch Mackey and his fiancee’s Tuesday interview on “GMA” below, followed by the original video of the incident:
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