Pregnant Woman Slammed to the Ground by Police Speaks Out on Her Abuse

Michelle Cooks was eight months pregnant when police officers slammed her to the ground in the parking lot at her child's school in Southern California. The entire arrest was caught on police body camera.
Police officers were called to the school parking lot when an unidentified white woman called accusing Cooks of harassment. Officers initially dismissed the accusation due to no visible evidence, but it was when Cooks refused to give her name and ID that the event escalated.

Trigger warning: violence



“Cooks should not have been arrested for failure to identify herself,” an ACLU statement said. “A person who is not suspected of a crime has no obligation to identify herself."

She was served with charges of resisting arrest, but they were later dismissed by a judge.   Thankfully, Cooks gave birth to a healthy daughter, Olive, two months after the assault.

Joneka Percentie is a rising junior studying Mass Media Communications, Africana Studies, and Women’s and Gender Studies at UNC Charlotte. When she’s not working with SPARK Movement, or tweeting @jpercentie, she enjoys singing, reading, and sleeping. Email her at joneka.percentie@forharriet.com

michelle cooks police police brutality video