Cop dumps quadriplegic man out of his wheechair

The story:

Police Suspended for Wheelchair Dumping

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Four Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies have been suspended after purposely tipping a quadriplegic man out of his wheelchair at a jail, authorities said Tuesday.

Orient Road Jail surveillance footage from Jan. 29 shows veteran deputy Charlette Marshall-Jones, 44, dumping Brian Sterner out of his wheelchair and searching him on the floor after he was brought in on a warrant after a traffic violation.

Sterner said when he was taken into a booking room and told to stand up, Jones grew agitated when he told her that he could not.

"She was irked that I wasn't complying to what she was telling me to do," he told The Tampa Tribune.

"It didn't register with her that she was asking me to do something I can't do."

Jones has been suspended without pay, and Sgt. Gary Hinson, 51, Cpl. Steven Dickey, 45 and Cpl. Decondra Williams, 36 have also been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.

"The actions are indefensible at every level," Chief Deputy Jose Docobo said. "Based on what I saw, anything short of dismissal would be inappropriate."

He said the officers' actions were an aberration.

Yes, just another story documenting the callous abuse of power by law enforcement. Unbelieveable, but... not, right?

But it's also an example of how inept the media is at covering disability. The Associated Press headline: "Police suspended for wheelchair dumping"

"Wheelchair dumping" is ambiguous, obnoxiously imprecise, and goes for the shock value at the expense of even mentioning the victim involved. "Man dumped from wheelchair by cop" would have preserved the news shock value while also speaking the truth.

In any case, "wheelchair dump" has another meaning. "Dump" (also known as "rake" or "squeeze") refers to the seat angle on a wheelchair. To a seasoned wheelchair user, a story titled "wheelchair dumping" suggests discussion of the intricacies of butt comfort, balance, and leverage to push oneself. To a wheelchair user, the headline is not only insulting, it makes no sense.

The video of the abuse shows the police officer walking behind the man in the wheelchair and abruptly tipping the chair forward so the seat is at much more than a 45-degree angle from normal. Sterner attempts, briefly, to hold onto the arms before falling forward head first and landing hard on the floor. He is then rolled around on the floor and searched before being placed roughly back in his chair. The TV news report showing this video includes footage of Sterner outside, wearing sunglasses and using his arms and hands with some difficulty. He explains to the news camera that he has no feeling from the chest down and did not know at first how badly he was injured from the fall, but thought he might have broken some ribs.