A Black man was arrested in Montgomery County, Md., this month after helping his intoxicated neighbor. He thinks his race played a factor in the incident.
A now-viral video which was posted to Instagram shows 23-year-old Samir Ahmed being arrested by four Montgomery County police officers when they responded to a call regarding a drunken man who needed medical attention. Neighbors can be heard shouting at the police that they have the wrong person.
However, the video shows the officer insisting that Ahmed is the one under the influence. The man who needed the assistance was unconscious and not helped immediately. That added fuel to the already tense situation.
The officers, unfortunately, didn’t do much to ease the neighbors’ fears. They were downright condescending even as they postured like they were there to help.
An officer on the scene claimed she smelled marijuana on Ahmed. In the state of Maryland, that is probable cause for arrest. They proceeded to search him and allegedly found a small amount of marijuana in his possession. However, he wasn’t charged with possession. If it was less than ten grams, then it would be considered “a civil offense under Maryland law that is punishable by participation in a drug education program, an assessment for substance abuse disorder, possible substance abuse treatment, and a fine, the amount of which depends on whether the violation is a first, second, or subsequent violation of the statute.”
In a study conducted by the ACLU of Maryland over 10 years, Blacks and whites used marijuana at comparable rates but arrests of Blacks for marijuana possession was significantly higher than whites in every county in Maryland.
In an absurd twist, Ahmed wasn’t charged for possession. He was charged with resisting arrest, failure to obey a reasonably lawful order, obstructing and hindering and disorderly conduct, according to Maryland court records. All of which are punishable with jail time and fines.
The charges are completely inappropriate considering the young man was trying to save someone’s life. But alas, it’s just another day in America when you’re Black.
*Reader Question* If you were a cop on the scene and you smelled marijuana on Ahmed, would you have arrested him
