Jay-Z is stepping in to offer legal support for the Phoenix couple who was held up at gunpoint by officers because their four-year-old daughter allegedly stole a $1 Barbie doll - an incident that the chief of police says is ‘unacceptable’.
The philanthropic arm of the rapper’s entertainment company Roc Nation has hired a high-powered attorney to join the legal team that is preparing to sue the city of Phoenix for $10million.
Dravon Ames, 22, and Aisha Harper, 24, parents to two young children, filed a notice of claim on Thursday accusing the police officers of committed battery, unlawful imprisonment, false arrest, and infliction of emotional distress.
The police are also accused of violating the couple’s civil rights.
Jay-Z's (seen above in Oakland on June 5) Roc Nation entertainment company will offer legal support to the young Phoenix family filmed being threatened at gunpoint by police officers after their four-year-old daughter allegedly stole a $1 doll from a store
In the footage released Friday, cops can be seen pointing their guns at pregnant Iesha Harper and the one-year-old daughter in her arms while telling the children's 22-year-old father Dravon Ames: 'I'm gonna put a f***ing cap in your f***ing head.' The family are pictured during a press conference about their plans to sue the city for $10million
Chilling footage from May 29 shows cops surrounding Ames and his family with guns drawn. The incident is understood to have been sparked by accusations of the theft of a $1 doll
A notice of claim is a legal document filed with courts by a party which intends to bring a lawsuit.
Phoenix police released a 16-page incident report accusing the couple of stealing other items from the store.
Police also allege that the couple was combative during the encounter and that officers were fearful they were armed.
In disturbing video footage of an incident in late May released on Friday, cops can be seen pointing their guns at a pregnant Harper who was holding her one-year-old daughter while telling Ames: 'I'm gonna put a f***ing cap in your f***ing head.'
The officers are said to have been responding to a report about a theft at a Family Dollar store.
The parents say they were unaware that their elder daughter had taken the doll out of the store.
Team ROC announced that it would provide legal assistance to the family. It is also calling for the police officers involved to be fired.
The company also announced that it hired Alex Spiro, a well-known attorney, to work with the family’s lawyers pro bono.
Team ROC says that it also plans additional legal action against the police officers.
Jeri Williams, Phoenix's chief of police, said on Sunday that she has apologized to the family for the 'unacceptable' behavior of the officers
Dania Diaz, Roc Nation’s managing director of philanthropy, called the incident ‘absolutely sickening.’
‘There is no place for that behavior in our world – let alone our justice system – and we are calling for the immediate termination of the police officers in question,’ Diaz said.
‘We are committed to supporting the family to ensure that justice is served.’
Roc Nation has offered assistance in other cases of perceived injustice that made headlines nationwide.
In November 2018, the company got involved in the case of a black man who was arrested while wearing a hoodie inside a mall in Memphis.
It also came to the assistance of an 11-year-old Florida boy who was arrested for refusing to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance earlier this year.
Roc Nation also fought against the authorities’ plan to deport rapper 21 Savage.
Meanwhile, Jeri Williams, the chief of police, said on Sunday that she has apologized to the family.
‘What we saw in that video isn't in keeping with good policing, it's unacceptable,’ she told KPNX-TV.
‘I apologized to the family for the interaction and to be honest with you, I'm apologizing to the community too because that is not what should have happened in that circumstance.’
Jay-Z's company has hired high-powered attorney Alex Spiro (above) to offer pro bono assistance to the family's legal team
Roc Nation has gotten involved in other high-profile cases, including the November 2018 arrest of a black man who wore a hoodie inside a Memphis mall (left) and the government's efforts to deport rapper 21 Savage (right)
Williams said that the behavior of the officers was ‘unacceptable,’ and that the department is making the internal investigation into the case its top priority.
‘Having been a cop for 30 years, you kind of sit back and say, 'What was going on?”,’ Williams said.
‘That's what we need to address.’
The internal probe is focused on two officers seen in the video - one of whom has been on the force for more than 20 years.
‘I am with everyone in the community who is angry, who is outraged, I have officers out there who are angry and outraged to see this is what brush we are being painted with when I know we that we're better than that, I know this department is better than that, I know our community is better than that but at the end of the day I have to take responsibility and be accountable,’ Williams said.
She said that the officers were not wearing body cameras because the cameras have yet to be provided to police in that specific precinct.
Williams says she expects the internal investigation to be expedited due to the intense interest the case has generated nationwide.
Earlier on Sunday, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego lambasted local police over the incident.
Gallego issued a statement on Saturday calling the frightening incident 'completely inappropriate and clearly unprofessional'.
She has demanded a thorough investigation.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego (above) lambasted local police on Saturday over the incident
Gallego is also expediting the deadline for police-worn cameras to August and has scheduled a community meeting to discuss the matter on Tuesday.
Ames and Harper say a Phoenix Police Department officer injured their one-year-old daughter by pulling on one of her arms after the mother refused a command to put the child down.
Harper said the girl couldn't walk and the pavement was hot.
Harper said she was handcuffed after she gave the child to a bystander and was thrown face-first into a police vehicle.
The officer who pulled on the child's arm had profanely told Harper that he could have shot her in front of her children.
The notice of claim also said Ames was injured when an officer threw him against a vehicle, kicking his leg so hard that the father collapsed and punching him for no reason.
The claim said one of the officers profanely told Ames in front of his
