ROCK HILL, S.C. — Editor's Note: On July 8, the charge against Travis Price was dropped, and the Rock Hill Police Department announced one of the police officers involved had been fired. The announcements were made the same day the York County Solicitor's Office released bodycam videos showing the viral arrest.
Original reporting continues below.
Two Rock Hill Police officers are on administrative leave as state detectives have begun an investigation into the arrest of two Black men that went viral on social media.
Police Chief Chris Watts said Thursday that his department was following multiple procedures for transparency. That included putting two officers, who have not been named, on administrative leave. South Carolina's Law Enforcement Division (SLED) has also begun an independent investigation into the arrest of Ricky Price and his brother, Travis Price, on Wednesday.
Watts reviewed details of Rock Hill Police's narrative, saying Ricky Price tried to push away from officers to run, saying he threw punches at officers when they were trying to remove his handcuffs so he could take off some jewelry. Watts said officers targeted pressure points on Price's body during the arrest and one officer hit Price in the face, causing him to bleed.
Dr. Norma Gray of the Rock Hill chapter of the NAACP reviewed body camera video with police. She said it could take anywhere from weeks to months to fully determine what happened during the arrest. Gray also said the viral video on Facebook did not show what happened before Ricky Price was in custody and urged the community to give police and public officials time to investigate.
When asked if he'd release the full footage, Watts said it wouldn't happen immediately. He said his department wanted to find witnesses at the scene to help piece the events together, and he also wants to speak with the Price family to see if they were OK with releasing the video to the public.
Both Watts and Gray called for peaceful protests.
“We have met with local and state leaders, and we will continue to do so as we move forward,” Watts said. “The Rock Hill Police Department recognizes the pain and frustration our community feels over this incident. We want the public to know that their First Amendment rights to assemble will be protected.”
Justin Bamberg, a South Carolina state representative, said that Ricky Price suffered a broken nose and was in a wheelchair after the incident. Price's bond was denied Thursday.
"Ricky is hurt and he's hurt bad," Bamberg said. "He has a broken nose, he's in a wheelchair. And you've got to ask yourself ... How is an innocent person, who has yet to be proven guilty, end up in a wheelchair? It's kind of frustrating."
Friday evening, the SC Black Activists Coalition spoke in front of RHPD to air their frustrations.
(Note: the below video contains some explicit language from at least one speaker)
Leaders with the coalition said the Black community in Rock Hill was "not satisfied" with the state of the investigation into the arrest thus far, along with expressing dissatisfaction for only putting the two officers involved on administrative leave. The coalition demanded the charges against Ricky and Travis Price be dropped and have called on the Department of Justice to launch an investigation into the RHPD.
"We're not okay with your tokens of offerings," said Justin Hart, one of the coalition leaders. "We want justice."
Latarsiaoa Hinton also spoke at the coalition's news conference, held before a protest featuring music from a South Carolina artist. She says she's a member of Ricky Price's family.
"There was no need -- he wasn't arrested, he was mauled like a dog," she said. Hinton also promised "no peace until there's a bond" for Price, and called on protestors to remain peaceful.
The protests continued into the night, remaining largely peaceful even as attendees gathered in front of the police department. At one point, however, officers in riot gear formed a line with about a dozen protestors on the other side.