Surveillance video from inside and outside a West Sixth Street nightclub shows a diverse, festive crowd at closing time Aug. 21, and no evidence of black or white patrons being treated differently, investigators say.
"The surveillance video fails to substantiate claims that the young men were singled out because of their race," said Cleveland Safety Director Martin Flask.
Police are still examining the behavior of a police officer, Flask noted, and the results of a use-of-force investigation should go to the police chief this week. Meanwhile, a young man faces three misdemeanor charges for assault, trespass and disorderly conduct, so a criminal investigation is underway as well.
But race does not appear to be important in either inquiry, Flask said.
Stanley Miller, executive director of the Cleveland NAACP, said Sunday it's too soon to make that determination and he doubts that police can do it on their own.
"This is a real issue, and I think somebody needs to take the time to investigate it," Miller said. "But the police can't investigate themselves."
On Thursday, the Cleveland NAACP held a news conference at which black civic leaders described the arrests of the Morehouse College graduates as an example of police abuse and racial intolerance in the city's entertainment district.
The incident is one of the latest to rock the Warehouse District during a tense summer, as police and business owners deal with what they describe as a younger, rowdier crowd.
Jason Ruiz, 27, and Alexander Parilla, 22, had been recruited to Cleveland by a downtown bank to participate in its executive training program. On a Friday night, they went out with other members of that program and later met up with fellow Morehouse graduates at Velvet Dog, a popular dance club.
They claim the were roughed up by bar security and by a police officer when they objected to being told to leave.
Ruiz was later struck in the face before being handcuffed, arrested and charged with the three misdemeanors. Parilla was not charged with a crime.
The bar's video surveillance, integral to the police investigation, was viewed by The Plain Dealer Friday and again Saturday.
It shows the two young men and their friends at the exit of a busy club at closing time, smiling and talking with young ladies. Bouncers can be seen approaching the pair and their friends several times and pointing the way out, as a racially mixed crowd streams past.
The bar video shows no physical contact between the men and security guards inside the club and no apparent verbal confrontation, either. Outside, an altercation ensues.
A camera posted above West Sixth Street catches both Ruiz and Parilla stepping backward out of the club, followed by Officer Anthony Sauto, who motions them to keep moving.
In his police report, Sauto said Ruiz and Parilla defied a bouncer and that he helped to escort them out.
There is no physical contact, but Ruiz and Parilla are clearly shouting at Sauto, who is in uniform, and jabbing fingers toward his face.
An enhanced version of the video, viewed by The Plain Dealer, shows Ruiz at one point grabbing Sauto's arm and the police officer pushing his hand away.
Moments later, Ruiz appears to push Sauto, who falls back, momentarily off balance. That's when a security guard grabs Ruiz from behind, pinning his arms.
The police officer and the security guard move both Ruiz and Parilla toward a street lined with parked cars.
In an earlier interview, Ruiz said the officer threw him down on the hood of a car and punched him several times in the face.
In his police report, Sauto said Ruiz was resisting arrest and he struck him in the face to subdue him.
The video shows a struggle ensuing for several minutes, but distance and passersby on West Sixth mar the view.
Miller said if the video is illuminating, police should make it public.
"Why don't they be transparent and show everybody what they have?" he asked.
Flask said the video will not be made public until its role in a police investigation is complete.
Source:Plain Dealer
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