JAY-Z Arranged Free Legal Aid For Phoenix Family
JAY Z‘s Roc Nation has stepped in to provide legal representation for an Arizona couple that’s suing the city of Phoenix following a harrowing incident with law enforcement last month, Arizona Central reports.
As previously reported, Dravon Ames and Iesha Harper were pulled over and confronted by police after their four-year-old child was accused of stealing a Barbie doll from a local Dollar Store. Ames and Harper allege authorities forcibly removed them from their vehicle, brandished their weapons and threatened to shoot them.
In footage captured by bystanders, Harper, who is pregnant, pleads with officers not to aim their guns at her face; Ames is pushed against a police cruiser while an officer forcibly searches him. Both Ames and Harper were eventually released without being charged or being issued a ticket.
Team ROC, the philanthropic wing of Roc Nation, has reportedly reached out to the family to provide legal support, call for the termination of the police officers and “ensure the well-being of the children,” Didier Morais, a representative for the organization, told Arizona Central.
Arizona officers were caught using excessive force and threatening to shoot a pregnant mother over an alleged shoplifting incident. #PhoenixPD do the right thing. These officers are unfit to serve. #BarbieIsForLittleBlackGirlsToo #DravonAmes #IeshaHarper https://t.co/YjMhXPRTUN pic.twitter.com/vz1Vurg9Wn
— Team Roc (@teamroc) June 15, 2019
High-profile attorney Alex Spiro has joined the family’s legal team pro bono and plans on suing one of the officers for child neglect, Morais said.
“There is no place for that behavior in our world – let alone our justice system – and we are calling for the immediate termination of the police officers in question,” Roc Nation Managing Director of Philanthropy Dania Diaz said in a statement to Arizona Central. “We are committed to supporting the family to ensure that justice is served.”
The couple is currently pursuing a $10 million lawsuit against the city of Phoenix.
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