![]() ![]() Zamolo invented the WRAP, and Walnut Creek police started running field tests to see if it would work for them. Medical studies, field tests, and oversight “But you know, they were having maybe 20, maybe 30 deaths across the United States.” There was no risk ever identified to me, prior to the mid-90s,” he says. ![]() “I used to hogtie, probably, hundreds of times. Former Walnut Creek officer Craig Zamolo invented the WRAP. That’s where a suspect’s ankles are tied to their handcuffs. “I know that it's been really effective for us in keeping people from hurting themselves, being able to contain somebody and calm them down and give them a little bit of time so they're not flailing about and hurting folks,” DeCosta said.Īnd actually, the WRAP was brought to Hayward as a safe alternative to the Hobble, or hogtying suspects. New devices like the WRAP usually need city council approval. She says the WRAP is only used in violent confrontations in Hayward by higher ups who are re-trained at least once a year. Hayward police Sergeant Tasha DeCosta says she can’t comment on pending cases, like Greer’s. “We don't know if it's the WRAP that's causing it, or improper use of the WRAP.” “We know of at least four cases where people have died in similar cases where the WRAP has been used,” Cajina says. Greer isn’t the only person in the Bay Area who has died while inside the WRAP. “You alright dude? Hey, wake up.”Īccording to Cajina, by the time paramedics arrived, and CPR was started, it was too late. “You alright, bud? Take a few breaths,” one of the officers says in the video. But Cajina thinks Greer had already lost consciousness when officers placed him inside the device. They say they placed Greer inside the device before he was unconscious. Officers use it to restrain suspects who seem violent. It’s kind of like a straightjacket for the legs. While on the ground, officers placed Greer inside a body restraint, called the WRAP. This is where Cajina and officers disagree. Eventually he lost consciousness,” Cajina says.Īccording to court documents, BART police say that officers involved and Greer all “inexplicably” ended up on the ground during a struggle. “The officers decided to bring him to the floor, to the ground, and while on the ground several officers tased him repeatedly. ![]() “What are you guys doing to me?” he says. Greer starts panicking, and takes a couple of steps back. Hayward and BART officers are at the scene. The officer then gives Greer a field sobriety test. “How much did you have to drink tonight?” “You’re not under arrest,” an officer can be heard telling Greer in the video. The chaotic scene was filmed back in 2014, after Greer was pulled over for driving recklessly. So, how can the police and the public know what devices are safe?Īttorney Fulvio Cajina remembers watching the body camera footage of James Greer’s death for the first time. They say no one has ever died or been injured because of the device.īut last spring, newly released body camera footage showed the death of James Greer, who died while inside the WRAP back in 2014. The WRAP was invented twenty years ago by two former Walnut Creek police officers. It’s a body restraint that straps around a suspects’ legs so they can’t move. But there’s another device that you probably haven’t heard of. “I don't accept I was trying to hurt anyone,” he said.When you think of the tools in a police officer’s toolkit, you probably think of devices like handcuffs, pepper spray, and stun guns. He also accepted the video showed that while Constable Barlow was behind him, his right leg moved backwards, but denied this was an attempt to kick the officer. Under cross-examination, the teenager accepted he was told he was under arrest shortly before the leg sweep. The hearing, before Magistrate Rami Attia, has been set down for three days. The court was told the complainant's injuries included cuts and abrasions to his leg and chin, soreness and pain to his neck, a chipped tooth and bleeding from an injury to the mouth.Ĭonstable Barlow's barrister, Brent Haverfield, said there would be "an element of self-defence" in the matter. Mr Robinson said Constable Barlow gave a version of the incident during an interview which "contradicted" the video, including that the complainant "tensed" his body and attempted to break free. "The prosecution says the force used by the accused was not reasonably necessary in the circumstances," he said. Mr Robinson earlier told the court an expert in the use of force is expected to testify that the leg sweep technique is not the methodology taught to NSW Police Force officers, however it is not prohibited. "That I can't, you know, go to my own park harassed by police."
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