The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department says three teens, who are black, were mistakenly detained at a Target store during a burglary investigation last week
VENTURA, California. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has said three teenagers, who are black, were mistakenly detained at a Target store in Westlake Village during a burglary investigation last week.
Thousand Oaks teens (a 17-year-old and two 16-year-olds) were walking home on Jan. 17 after attending church with friends when they decided to stop at Target to buy snacks, the County reported. of Ventura.
The teens said they were victims of racial profiling by Target staff and county deputies.
One of the boys told the star that he and his friends were unaware that there was a robbery incident while they were in the store, where the suspects smashed through the glass of the electronics section and stole smartphones. ligents.
“We were followed in the store by an employee who told us, ‘Hey, I can’t make him go on horseback,'” he said, explaining that the group decided to leave, but found the barricaded exit with shopping carts.
The teenager said Target security staff did not let the teenagers leave despite other visitors leaving.
Three deputies then arrived and arrested the teenagers in the front of the store, including a handcuffed man, and placed him in a police vehicle for up to 20 minutes before releasing him. Authorities later said they were identified as suspects by the store’s leak prevention agents.
Captain Salt “Chuck” Becerra said in a statement on social media on Friday that the teens were released and that an internal investigation found no evidence of excessive force.
Target issued a statement saying the company has apologized to the teens, fired one of the members of the security team involved and will require store employees to retrain for safety and racial bias.
The mother of the teenager who was handcuffed has sued lawyer Toni Jaramilla to file a lawsuit alleging a violation of her son’s civil rights. She discusses the deputies’ account to determine that excessive force was not used.
“The way they were arrested was very aggressive and was not necessary for the situation,” Jaramilla said.