Several men who were caught on film being beaten by Philadelphia police now say the officers concocted a story to justify the now high profile incident.
When the video surfaced, Philadelphia accused the three men of being suspects in a shooting; however, attorneys representing the individuals deny the allegations.
Eldridge Suggs, who represents Dwayne Dyches says the police believed his client was the third suspect involved in a shooting that fatally wounded a Philadelphia police officer several days prior.
“All they’ve done is make up some facts to account for the beating and the reason why they beat this man is because he looked so much like the cop-killer,” he said in a statement.
The beating has drawn harsh words from individuals on all sides of the debate on police brutality. Al Sharpton said the incident was “worse than Rodney King.” Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and Philadelphia’s Police Chief Charles Ramsey have also apologized for the officers’ actions.
All 13 officers involved in the event have been removed from street duty pending the outcome of an investigation.
