High Point Police Department says use of force during arrest of Walmart theft suspect was justified

HIGH POINT, N.C. (WGHP) — The High Point Police Department says the use of force during an arrest of a Walmart theft suspect earlier this month was “reasonable and compliant with the U.S. Constitution, North Carolina law and department policy.”

On April 8, High Point officers arrested Keith McClain. Officers say he matched the description of a person who had just stolen merchandise from Walmart.

The police department says officers had both probable cause and an official duty to arrest him for those crimes, and the decision to use force was in response to McClain’s resistance to a lawful arrest.

“The actions of the police officers were necessary to do their official and lawful duty to arrest Mr. McClain … Once Mr. McClain was finally handcuffed, the officers ceased using force against him,” said Interim High Point Police Chief Curtis Cheeks III. “Any time a wanted suspect who is legally being placed under arrest decides to fight and resist attempts to secure his hands, police officers face the risk of physical injury and the threat that the person may be reaching for a weapon.”

Officers approaching McClain told him he was under arrest and instructed him to put his hands behind his back.

For around 20 seconds, McClain was cooperative and then began resisting by tensing up and pulling away.

Officers continued to attempt to de-escalate the situation by telling him to submit to the lawful arrest while at the same time dealing with Emmanuel Randolph, who kept trying to step in between the officers and McClain, police say.

McClain began to aggressively pull away after one handcuff was applied and swung at officers. He was then taken to the ground where he continued to resist officers.

For about four minutes, McClain continued to resist various methods of physical force, such as baton strikes, fist strikes and empty hand tactics, which were used by officers to gain control of his other hand and make an arrest, police say.

Randolph and several other people at the scene ignored commands to stay back and away from the officers who were trying to complete the arrest.

“The officer’s decision to use OC spray to keep these bystanders safely away was a response to the refusal of individuals to follow lawful commands,” Cheeks said.

Officers later arrested Randolph for obstructing the arrest of McClain. Randolph did not resist the arrest, and no force was used against him by the police.

The officers were able to complete handcuffing McClain once he said “I’m good” and stopped resisting the arrest.

Police say the use of force stopped after McClain was handcuffed.

After a use of force incident, department policy requires officers to assess medical needs and notify a supervisor which officers reportedly did.

It is the written policy of the High Point Police Department that every use of force is reviewed by the officer’s chain of command and ultimately by the chief of police. Our officers recognize that the use of force requires constant evaluation. Even at its lowest level, the use of force is a responsibility we take seriously as an agency. The review is based on the totality of the circumstances, all reports, video, and both police and reporting party statements.

After that review, it was clear that the force used by all involved officers in this incident was reasonable and compliant with the U.S. Constitution, North Carolina law, and department policy.

The actions of our officers during a use-of-force incident are largely influenced by the decisions, actions, and compliance of the other person(s) involved. Our officers recognize that the use of force requires constant evaluation and carries a responsibility of care for the parties involved. Our priority as a police agency is to ensure that our officers perform their duties in a professional and reasonable manner.

We are committed to continuing community dialogue and creating an environment of trust and
cooperation with the High Point community. We look forward to helping the community
understand the difficult work of policing while seeking to understand community expectations
on how our policies impact each member of our community.

Interim High Point Police Chief Curtis Cheeks III

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