OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma City Police Officer was charged with a criminal felony Wednesday by Oklahoma County DA Vicki Behenna.
Court records show that Sgt. Joseph Gibson was arrested for Aggravated Assault and Battery by other members of the OKCPD on the same day.
District Judge Amy Palumbo has been assigned to hear the case.
Gibson is charged with the felony after the DA reviewed body-worn camera video and video from a nearby video showing Gibson forcefully throwing Lich Vu, 71, face-first to the ground and handcuffing his hands behind his back. (OKCPD identified Vu as 70, but the DA’s office says he is 71.)
The DA’s press release says that Vu remains in the hospital with “significant injuries including an orbital fracture, neck fracture and a brain bleed.”
Free Press reported the violent incident earlier, including the full video the OKCPD released.
On October 27, Sgt. Gibson was dispatched to the scene of a minor crash involving two cars in a turn-around on NW 39th Street close to Meridian.
In the process, Vu became agitated with the officer contending that he should not get a ticket for this driving actions that led to the crash.
Eventually, the officer executed a takedown so violent that Vu had to be transported to the hospital.
This is the video cued to the moment when the officer threw Vu to the ground as seen from a nearby business security camera:
“The Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office takes all use-of-force incidents very seriously,” said District Attorney Vicki Zemp Behenna.“We evaluate the law and the facts in each individual case, and in this particular case determined the Officer’s actions were an unreasonable use-of-force.”
The DA’s press release explained that as defined in state statute 21 O.S. § 646, an assault and battery becomes aggravated when committed under any of the following circumstances:
- “When great bodily injury is inflicted upon the person assaulted; or
- When committed by a person of robust health or strength upon one who is aged, decrepit, or incapacitated.”
“For the purpose of this section ‘great bodily harm’ means bone fracture, protracted and obvious disfigurement, protracted loss or impairment of the function of a body part, organ or mental faculty, or substantial risk of death.”
Note: The DA reminds readers that criminal charges are based on probable cause to believe a person has committed a crime. All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
Founder, publisher, and editor of Oklahoma City Free Press. Brett continues to contribute reports and photography to this site as he runs the business.
