Last month, 22-year-old Dravon Ames, his six-month pregnant fianceé, Iesha Harper and their two daughters, ages one and four, had guns drawn on them by the Pheonix Police Department responding to an alleged shoplifting incident at Family Dollar.
Now, the family is planning to sue the city of Pheonix for $10 million and Team Roc, JAY-Z‘s philanthropic leg of Roc Nation, wants to help.
The disturbing incident was captured on camera by witnesses outside of an apartment complex.
The video shows a police officer telling Ames “I’m gonna put a fucking cap in your fucking head” and “You’re gonna fucking get shot,” among other obscenities while kicking his knees and forcing his face into the hot asphalt.
It also shows another officer using threatening language towards Harper, 24, as she was holding their one-year-old baby girl in her hands. The police officer can be heard yelling for her to put the child down — although the young mother repeatedly told him that her baby was not able to walk yet.
“Our hearts go out to Dravon Ames, Iesha Harper and their children after this traumatic experience,” Team Roc’s Dania Diaz said in an email to HipHopDX. “They deserve compassion and empathy, not to have guns drawn at them and be dehumanized. That video is the picture of hate, shame on you! If they need our help — now or in the future — we are at their disposal.”
To assist with the case, Team Roc reportedly hired high-power New York attorney Alex Spiro, the same lawyer who helped 21 Savage beat his immigration case. The family is currently represented by former Arizona attorney general Tom Horne who filed a $10 million notice of claim against Pheonix last week.
If the city doesn’t respond within 60 days, a lawsuit will be filed.
The incident in question began on May 27 (or May 29 according to the family), when Harper and Ames were leaving a Family Dollar store at approximately 11:17 a.m. and their four-year-old allegedly stole a toy doll. An anonymous citizen who saw her take the doll reportedly notified the police about it.
According to a Facebook post by the police department, the store manager called the police on the 4-year-old — although the manager asserts she did not. Police claim Ames admitted to stealing a pack of underwear and throwing it out of his car window.
The police report states that when officers arrived at Family Dollar, Harper reportedly put her vehicle into reverse and drove away. Soon after, she stopped her car, got out and again, drove away. The police say that’s when they discovered she had three misdemeanor warrants for her arrest.
Officers later located the vehicle at an apartment complex where they apprehended Ames and another woman, who is the niece to Harper. While apprehended, Ames reportedly confessed to shoplifting the pack of underwear and driving on a suspended license.
The report also states Harper’s niece believed they stole the toy doll because they didn’t have any money.
After the police withdrew their guns, ending the traumatizing incident, the couple was released without being charged and Ames was issued a citation for driving on a suspended license.
On June 11, Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams reportedly became aware of the incident as well as the video displaying “extremely offensive and unprofessional language and actions.” As punishment, Chief Williams placed the two officers, identified as Christopher Meyer and Nicholas Welch, on desk duty. She also shared a videotaped message on Facebook expressing her disappointment.
The reporting officers’ account, however, is strikingly different from the family’s version of what happened and fails to mention the two officers drawing their guns, then aiming it at the family while making threats to shoot them.
“At least it will be recorded and we can make a difference,” Ames told the Arizona Republic of what he was thinking while guns were pointed in his face. “We’re alive to tell the story. We’re alive to let people know that this is going on.”
“Behind the desk isn’t good enough for me,” Harper further told the Arizona Republic. “Sooner or later, they’re going to be right back out on the streets. They should be fired. Their job is to protect and serve.”
Watch Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams’ message about the shoplifting incident below.
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Ames admitted to stealing a pack of underwear and throwing it out of his car window. He should have kept them. It wasn’t like he had a bag of rocks. lol
Yeah the SJW narrative here is insane. Dindu parents with a dindu baby. Maybe this could have been avoided if Blaques stopped thinking it’s racist to not be allowed to steal
So your justifying the police reaction to a stolen doll worth $1?
Don’t bother. Dude is a coward hiding in the internet to say online what he/she/it knows damn well they won’t say to somebody’s face. He knows what us “Dindu’s” would do.
I know you think it’s okay to steal and have an excuse for everything. I know I make more money than you, and I’ve never had to steal nor would I. You’re a loser and a dindu. Lol @ your boyfriend threatening violence when reminded it’s still illegal steal even when you’re black. Also if they weren’t already stealing, as they were, I might find some sympathy. These lowlives took their child to help them steal from a dollar store. What a loser!
Even if they stole a little baby dolly from the store, the Drug Kingpin Pablo Escobar “Bad Boys bad boys what you gonna do when they come for you” treatment they’d received had everything to do with them being black for such a petty crime. You may believe in the Death penalty for a $5 item (being it’s black lives and all) but I certainly do not. Try again looser.
“Looser”? Lol and all the dindus coming out the woodwork to defend a family that shoplifts together. I wonder how much public assistance these dindus put in their pocket. Explain this, why was it so easy to guess a shoplifter of a dollar store is blaque? The loser race strikes again
I know you think it’s okay to steal and have an excuse for everything. I know I make more money than you, and I’ve never had to steal nor would I. You’re a loser and a dindu. Lol @ your boyfriend threatening violence when reminded it’s still illegal steal even when you’re black. Also if they weren’t already stealing, as they were, I might find some sympathy. These lowlives took their child to help them steal from a dollar store. What a loser!
How bout not stealing with your child and this whole situation is avoided. Why must the rules change for blaque people
I know you think it’s okay to steal and have an excuse for everything. I know I make more money than you, and I’ve never had to steal nor would I. You’re a loser
I know you think it’s okay to steal and have an excuse for everything. I know I make more money than you, and I’ve never had to steal nor would I. You’re a loser and a dindu. Lol @ your boyfriend threatening violence when reminded it’s still illegal steal even when you’re black. Also if they weren’t already stealing, as they were, I might find some sympathy. These lowlives took their child to help them steal from a dollar store. What a loser!
They did admit to stealing but still those KKK members ……my bad those serve and protect the community that pays taxes in which pay police officer salaries went way overboard like they found America top ten most wanted criminals. Yes the KKK has infiltrated law enforcement a long time ago and the FBI warned the public in 2006 but nobody cared to listen
Provide sources for your theory retard
So Jay-Z is helping those who steal and blame white America for their actions? How about he helps out those who really need it; like the immigrants who are being treated like dogs, and letting them die? Oh, wait! they’re not black… he doesn’t give a shit.
WTF are you doing to help?
###…Let’s be honest here, if he spit off like a dozen good things he does for charity would you believe him? Neither would I, so why ask this dumb ass question? You could never get an honest answer about what some random comments poster says, so why ask as if you know for a fact he’s never done anything to help anyone. You expressed extreme erratic emotion here, by spouting off something that you can only be ignorant about…you can’t possibly know how this dude carries himself in the real world. Say hi to Jay for me, you obviously have a deep emotional connection together
Well look here, an idiot who couldn’t recognize a rhetorical question if it crawled up his ass. The only deep connection here is between you and autism.
You expressed extreme stupidity. For one, you can’t be “extremely erratic” and second you should find a class that teaches you how to spot a rhetorical question. That way you don’t fuck around and expose your autism on the internet.
i recycle, reuse, reduce… your momma’s booty!
Talk shot about King HOV for helping others all you want, but let me ask this. When was the last time you seen broke woman beater Nas do something like this? He keeps saying he’s “for the people” but I haven’t seen him help others in need. Only talk about putting out a children’s book trying to make himself money when in reality, nobody will buy it. All Nas cares about his himself and selfishly needing money to pay off his child support to Kelis. King HOV has helped out 21 Savage with avoiding deportation, Lil Uzi Vert on continuing to make more music for his fans and helping families like this being harrassed by crooked officers. And people still want to hate him because he made it out the hood and became a billionaire. Fuck y’all. It’s the ROC!
This new trend of Black peolpe calling one another kings needs to stop. Someone said it about Nipsey then now everybody is a King. King this king that. Bunch of peolpe copying one another.
Ok so that Jefferson sessions dog became coxman talking about how much he earns on a hip hop site. Justifying the use of force for a dollar barbie taken by a four year old unbeknown to her parents. All your comments here are about black people, what they do and what they should be doing. You are a fool. You were raised with hate and feel people should give you respect automatically. You are an idiot. You know the shop refused to press charges right? If anybody commits a crime, they should get a punishment deserving of the crime and not more. But you will never understand. You have never been in that position. A spoilt brat who hides behind a phone to act like the punisher when you are nothing but a dick sucking coward. Wish I meet people like you in real life. I really do. Black or white. But you will never speak openly as all cowards. Change your name and come back again. Tormented soul. Nothing but a soggy bitch.
Unbeknown to the parents? So the parents were stealing from the store admittedly, but the Barbie was an accident? How intellectually dishonest do you have to be to believe that silly narrative. This is why you people can’t succeed statistically
None of my people get guns drawn on them after shoplifting because we don’t shop lift. Maybe this situation could have been avoided if the parents weren’t shop lifting. Lol at you saying the cops are crooked for arresting a family of shoplifting dindus
You mispelt Phoenix several times in the article. Who tf approves your articles? Fire them too.
That cop is defiantly coked out of his mind! Even if they did steal a barbie that is a ridiculous response, ” GET DOWN ON THE GROUND WE ARE GONNA NEED BACKUP!! WE HAVE A 4 YEAR OLD STEAL A BARBIE I REPEAT STEAL A BARBIE!’ This cop has mental health issues and needs to be fired asap.
“He’s defiantly Coke’s out of his mind? We have a 4 year old steal a Barbie”. I know it’s hard for the blaque community to speak in proper English, is it too much to ask that you not also write in Ebonics? Jesus Christ standards are only lowered for Blaques, never raised.
I wrote “Coked out of his mind” can you not read Coxman? you illiterate piece of garbage? I am also a white male not ‘Blaque” and I think you may have meant” Black”. However you should have said “African America. ”
I also don’t think you should be commenting on anyone’s Grammar considering you spell like a 3 year old retard.
Good Day sir.
Good day indeed, nothing worse than an illiterate racist.
Loooooool! Got him! Much props!
Coxman and Triple Phi OG have the same IP address so same person talking shit is white dude pretending to be black. Every white person wants to be black hence why they tan soooooo much to get darker.
BLACK POWER
There kids got caught stealing. They should be held accountable…
In 2019 clown world, police are supposed to let black people do whatever the fuck they want, while arresting white people for wrongthink. It’s not hard to see ( ( ( Who ) ) ) is in control, with all this anti-white action and propaganda rampant.
Don’t go and get angry black people, but that child is a criminal it’s in her blood. Clearly she was bred to get up to no good. The cop overreacted but I don’t blame him, he saw the evil potential in the little thief and wanted to stop it before it became a burden to society like most black criminals are.
The truth can’t be yours moron. The truth by definition is objective are you slow or just going while blaque?
I’m not black you ignorant redneck, personal truth is subjective. I’m not gonna give you an English lesson nor a lecture on philosophy. Go ask your inbred cousins what something being subjective means. The nerve of this trailer park bumpkin, I wish we could go back to the good old days where even you poor trailer parkistanis knew your place.
Russia…is that you?
The truth is objective stupid. That’s the English language, not a philosophical statement. You slow or just gay?
These clean white children’s just want to keep us clean from these people and have a safe life.. the cop was totally right..handled it perfectly and deservedly were those people
you know I had a police officer draw his gun at me once. I didn’t think for a second I could make millions off of it. only in America eh.
The fact that there are people in this comments section that would even think to defend and justify that cops action is exactly what’s wrong with this country. Drink bleach.
The fact that these people are being treated like they did nothing to cause the situation and any dissent is labeled racist is pathetic
So the criminal parents who didn’t follow the police officers instructions, hence turning this situation into what it became, are the victims?? Their children should be removed from their custody. They are clearly unfit to be parents. I wonder if Shawn Knowles is going to pay for the legal representation to get these children into a good home….
it isn’t as if this story is about capturing an international terrorist?