Single Father Welton Usher called us to his home on West Canal today after he said he was abused by police. Usher, who cooks lunch for his son every day, had gone to sharpen his kitchen knife so that he could clean the fish.
He went across the street to a welding shop to use their file and on the way back he ran into a police patrol which keeps a regular presence in that crime ridden area which is between George and Berkeley streets. He told us the police detained him for his knife:…
Welton Usher, Single Father
"I said, 'Officer, can I please get my knife now so that i can go back into my house and return to what i was doing. I had just gotten it sharpened to go clean with it, i tried to explain that to him. He said, No, no, you can't get back this knife; you can't do foolishness out here. Look at the size of this knife?' I said, Officer, 'I have a reason why I have this out here; I just got it sharpened. I'm going to do my business at my house; I don't carry these things anywhere. He said, 'Alright lets go! Get in! Get in!' I asked, Officer, why are you taking me for? Explain to me what I am doing.' He didn't want to hear that and told me to get in. And when we got to the station, one of them said, 'Lock him down for 48.' The next one said, 'Think Miss Grace can help you? You think those ladies will help you? They can't, it's we who run things! They can do what they want!' I said, 'Officer, I have no problem with what you all do or say; I'm telling you what my situation is.'"
Jules Vasquez
"Do you think that the actions of the officers were justified, because around here, a lot of people are armed?"
Welton Usher
"I wouldn't say no, but with me individually, I don't see why they had to act like that, because I was explaining my situation. I mean these are officers with understanding - they should have understanding. They could see my situation; it was my little son who had to come and turn off the stove. My rice pot was on; they didn't want to hear that and they took me and left it on. I had to humble myself because I want to come home to my boy. I don't want to be locked down for 48 hours. That's what the officer said, 'Lock him down for 48 hours; don't waste anytime with him.' I have my son to come home to; I had to cook for him."
Not only did police not return the knife, Usher says this afternoon a BDF soldier on patrol slapped him multiple times. That, he says, was the product of an old beef but he says it was an abuse nonetheless.
