Following a meeting of the Selma City Council, in which Selma City Councilman Sam Randolph called for the resignation of Selma Police Department (SPD) Chief Spencer Collier, more information has been provided regarding an incident that occurred Monday in front of the SPD station on Alabama Avenue.

Collier called Randolph’s statement “blindsiding,” noting that he briefed Selma City Council President Corey Bowie and Selma Mayor Darrio Melton on the incident prior to Tuesday’s council meeting.

“I felt the department had the support of the council,” Collier said. “At a minimum, the department should be allowed to give the officers’ version of the events before an elected official calls the officers derogatory names and calls for my resignation.”

Both Collier and attorney Brandon Wooten, who was involved in Monday’s incident, released statements Wednesday providing more details of the event, which ended in at least three arrests, the use of two tasers and pepper spray.

According to Collier, SPD officers made a traffic stop in Rangedale Annex shortly after 5 p.m. Monday after observing a black SUV “driving recklessly” – the traffic stop followed reports that the same vehicle had been spotted on Minter Avenue “acting suspiciously,” with a male passenger hanging out of the window, and a “shots fired” call in the area.

A second officer arrived on the scene to assist with the traffic stop and, after observing the passengers “making furtive movements,” the officers asked for permission to search the vehicle – the driver, later identified as Wooten’s niece, who had been on her cell phone since the interaction began, refused consent.

In a press release, Wooten stated that his niece, whose name was not provided, was ultimately given a traffic citation for failing to yield at a stop sign. The vehicle she was operating belonged to Wooten.

A K9 unit arrived on the scene – the occupants were informed that the dog would conduct an “open air sniff” and asked to exit the vehicle.

As the occupants were exiting the vehicle, an unrelated vehicle, which authorities would later discover was being driven by Wooten, arrived on the scene and the driver “began to quickly approach the scene of the traffic stop.”

According to Collier, Wooten was given “multiple repeated verbal commands,” all of which he ignored, to not approach the scene –  when Wooten attempted to get around a senior officer attempting to stop him, he was informed that he was being arrested.

As officers were attempting to “secure” Wooten, he “resisted” and was brought to the ground and eventually hit with a taser before officers were able to take him into custody – Wooten was eventually charged with Obstructing a Governmental Operation, Resisting Arrest and Public Intoxication.

Once at the police department, a large crowd had gathered and “refused to disburse” when a male juvenile suspect began to shout “profanity and threats” at officers. The suspect was told that he was under arrest and pepper spray had to be utilized to disperse the mob.

As the suspect was being handcuffed, a female suspect, later identified as Dominik West, 36, attempted to “pull the officer away and actively prevent him from making the arrest,” according to Collier.

After ignoring “several verbal commands,” West became more aggressive and was eventually tased and charged with Obstructing a Governmental Operation and Disorderly Conduct, while the juvenile suspect was charged with Disorderly Conduct and Resisting Arrest.

A larger crowd eventually gathered at the police department and had to be dispersed with assistance from the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) after becoming “disorderly.”

Collier said that investigations into the incident will continue, but Wooten’s arrest “appears to be textbook.”

“An important message that we have to convey to our community is that we are not going to conduct court on the side of the road,” Collier said. “There is a mechanism for that. This situation could have been isolated to probably just a traffic ticket if everyone would have listed to the commands given by the officers. Officers commands must be followed. I am going to support my officers when they refuse to allow interference into traffic stops or investigations, especially when verbal commands are repeatedly given and ignored.”

In Wooten’s eyes, this incident is only the latest in a long line of questionable actions, specifically at the hands of SPD Officer Ashley Gaskins.

Wooten claims the initial traffic stop, which led to the three arrests and deployment of force, was characterized by an “improper line of questioning” and an attempted “illegal search and seizure.”

Wooten stated that when he arrived on the scene he identified himself as the suspect’s attorney, and the owner of the vehicle she was driving, and began questioning the “reason of the prolonged stop.”

“As a local attorney, taxpayer and property owner, I was not met with the professional standard of a public servant, but instead brutal verbal and physical force,” Wooten said. “Citizens, and their legal agents, have a right to inquire on the legality of stops and searches. Through effective communication and dialogue, these situations should never rise to the level of a taxpayer laying on the ground, incapacitated and being repeatedly tased.”

Wooten says the incident involving Gaskins is “not an isolated incident.”

“Citizens continue to come forward relating similar incidents of excessive force at the hands of Officer Ashley Gaskins,” Wooten said. “I do not believe that this is standard behavior of the SPD and I support the good men and women of law enforcement that cherish their oath to protect and serve us. However, incidents like this cannot, will not, and should not be tolerated by the taxpaying citizens of Selma and/or Dallas County.”

Wooten is calling for the SPD to conduct a “full and transparent investigation” and take “immediate, swift and final action” against Gaskins, who he says “should not be allowed to simply receive another suspension or paid administrative leave.”

Formal correspondence has been submitted to Melton, the Selma City Council, the District Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Justice, Wooten said.

“I will always fight for victims, ensuring that basic human rights and decency are not trampled,” Wooten said. “This is an unfortunate situation, but I believe firmly in our justice system as long as it is fair and just for all.”

For his part, Collier says that the full investigation, including multiple videos in their entirety, witness testimonies and officer statements, will be released once the case goes before the next session of the Dallas County Grand Jury.

“The situation at the police station is without excuse,” Collier said. “The verbal threats of harming, hindering an officer or putting your hands on him to stop an arrest is always, always going to end with the result of you going to jail,” Collier said. “I will not tolerate someone putting their hands on my officers, it’s inexcusable. They are overworked, under-appreciated and if the public thinks they can put their hands on our officers, they are sadly mistaken.”