Police say that Pearson left the scene of a minor automobile accident and was pulled over on January 3rd. They say that they verbally ordered Pearson from their cruiser to show his hands and did not do so.
Pearson had a large sign on his driver’s door stating, “Driver is deaf.” However, he says that the police ran up to the car and started hitting him in the face as he tried to show them an identification card explaining that he is deaf.
He was arrested for resisting arrest and leaving the scene of an accident. He says that he was then denied a sign interpreter which he was in jail and has never been given such an interpreter to speak with police at the hospital or at the jail.
What is also interesting is that Pearl’s son is a police officer as is his son-in-law — a fact that his family say that he is unlikely to ever resist police.
While I can understand the arrest for leaving the scene, there are obviously a host of questions as to how the police handled this pull over stop on the highway. I am equally concerned with the alleged absence of an interpreter in such a case when police have beaten a man to the point of requiring hospital treatment. I am not sure how the hospital was able to address those injuries without such an interpreter.
News reports also state that the police affidavit made no mention whether or not the troopers realized Pearson was deaf. That would seem a pretty relevant issue for a police report.
Kudos: Michael Blott