A mum asked "are you stupid" while grappling with a police officer who wanted to speak to her son. The incident occurred at Hereford Drive in Netherton at around 9.50pm on Monday, July 27. The officer was responding to an allegation of a burglary at a house on the street and was looking to speak to the child as part of his investigations.
Video shows scuffle
A video showing the moment the lone police officer repeatedly scuffles with the mum before placing her under arrest has gained traction online in recent days. In the footage, the officer tells the mum: "Move away, I need to speak to them," indicating towards the boy and an unknown man. The woman replies "no, this is my son" and tries to move towards them.
The police officer tells her again to "move away" before pushing her backwards on two separate occasions. The woman responds: "Are you stupid...are you stupid?" The officer then tries to speak to the boy, but the mum again tries to interrupt, leading to another push that appears to make contact with her neck and head.
Arrest and release
The person behind the camera says "what are you doing...please stop" while the mum and police officer grapple. The officer pulls out his PAVA spray - a pepper spray used to stop potentially violent individuals - and threatens to use it. The boy can be heard to say: "If you spray me, I'm gone." He then adds: "You just tackled my mum...I don't want to speak to you after what you've done," to which the officer says: "You don't get a choice, you can join your mum."
Merseyside Police confirmed the woman was arrested on suspicion of breaching the peace, which gives police the power to intervene and arrest someone if it appears likely they will cause harm to someone. She was released when the incident concluded before the officer left the scene.
No burglary found
The ECHO understands the boy was not a suspect. A spokesperson for the force said: "Following CCTV enquiries it was established no burglary had taken place." Online commenters said the mum should have been allowed by the officer to be present when he spoke to her son. But the ECHO understands because the boy was not being questioned as a suspect or in detention, then the Police and Criminal Act (PACE) code of practice, which would have seen the boy have a designated appropriate adult, did not apply.
A spokesperson for the police added: "Professional standards are reviewing the incident and at this time, no formal complaint has been received in relation to this matter and no referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC)."
