People Are Outraged That Officers Yanked A 1-Year-Old From His Mother's Arms

An incident that took place in a social services office in Brooklyn has NYPD members under investigation, and a mother, Jazmine Headley, facing charges for acting in a manner injurious to a child, resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration, and criminal trespass. People are outraged after footage of the officers yanking a 1-year-old from his mother, Headley, went viral, raising many questions and eliciting the disappointment of many public officials.

This morning, NBC News reported that footage of Headley trying to fight off NYPD officers who were trying to take her son away from her as she laid on the floor and yelled "They're hurting my son! They're hurting my son!" has spawned multiple investigations. The NYPD did not immediately return Romper's request for comment.

The incident reportedly began when the mother sat down in the hall after being told there were no more seats available. However, the trouble began when Headley was asked to stand up, and refused. At that point, a struggle began between her and officials, and ultimately lead to them removing her child from her arms, and arresting her, while dozens of onlookers yelled things like: "Look what they are doing to her!" as Headley cried and struggled to maintain a hold on her son.

The New York Times reported that, at one point, one cop pulled out what appeared to be a stun gun and showed it to the crowd and NBC News reported that an officer pointed it at Headley's head.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams believes that the charges should be dropped, NBC News also reported, and that the onus falls more on the cops that behaved in what he believes is an inappropriate manner.

At a press conference, Adams shared: “The mother didn’t endanger the welfare of the child. The actions of the department endangered the welfare of the child."

City Council Speaker Corey Johnson echoed Adams' sentiments, sharing in a tweet shortly afterwards: "This is unacceptable, appalling and heart breaking. I’d like to understand what transpired and how these officers or the NYPD justifies this. It's hard to watch this video."

Warning: The following video contains disturbing footage which some may find triggering. Please watch at your own discretion.

Many people are speaking out about how strongly they disagree with the officer's actions, and how they believe justice for Headley is warranted.

"All of them need to be FIRED!! Charges on mother need to be dropped. These Law Enforcement and Judges need to be put in their place. This is absolutely UNACCEPTABLE and DISGUSTING. They seem to think they have the power to just snatch your child up because your not sitting correctly?? SERIOUSLY?? Get a good lawyer and don't give up until they are brought to justice. They are NOTHING," one viewer commented on the video on YouTube.

However, Patrick Lynch, the president of the NYPD's rank-and-file union, said in a statement that officers were put in an "impossible situation," as NBC's New York City affiliate reported.

"They didn't create the dispute at the HRA office — as always, they were called in to deal with the inevitable fallout when the rest of our City government fails in its task," he said.

Lynch continued: "The event would have unfolded much differently if those at the scene had simply complied with the officers' lawful orders. The immediate rush to condemn these officers leaves their fellow cops wondering: when confronted with a similar impossible scenario, what do you want us to do? The answer cannot be 'do nothing.'"

Regardless of where anyone stands on the issue, proceedings and hearings are pending. And the NYPD is reportedly reviewing the "troubling" video.