Hearing delayed for man accusing BPD of racial profiling, excessive force
A man who has accused the Bakersfield Police Department of racial profiling and excessive force when he was pulled over for a traffic violation had his hearing delayed Friday to September after his defense attorney received new evidence and requested time to review it.
Donte Heath, 50, was charged on April 11 with driving without a seat belt, not having an updated tab on his license plate and resisting arrest after he was detained during a traffic stop on New Year’s Eve after leaving a motel on Oak Street.
At Friday’s hearing, Alekxia Torres Stallings from Torres-Torres Stallings stood in for Heath’s defense attorney, David Torres. She said Torres needed more time to prepare the case after receiving evidence related to the case.
In a video Heath posted on Facebook at the time of his arrest, Heath repeatedly told the officers he was not going to get out of his car and told them to call a supervisor.
“I should feel protected by y’all but right now I feel threatened,” Heath said in the video.
One of the officers said that he did not have to explain why Heath had to get out of his car. But Heath continued to say he knew his rights and refused to get out of his car. Officers then broke Heath’s window and removed him from the car, according to the video.
The video went black and Heath could be heard screaming for help multiple times, saying the officer was breaking his arm.
According to the Bakersfield police report filed in Kern County Superior Court and sent to The Californian on Friday, five officers were involved in the traffic stop.
The officer who prepared the report, whose name was redacted, said he found Heath’s behavior “aggressive” and “threatening.” The officer wrote he considered the area of the traffic stop to be a high-crime area.
“I became concerned for officer’s safety as through experiences I have encountered subjects act in such manners are involved in criminal activity, may be concealing deadly weapons such as firearms, possess narcotics, or may have outstanding warrants,” the report stated.
The same officer wrote that, in the process of handcuffing Heath, he placed his knee on the detainee's upper arm and tricep to keep him pinned to the ground.
According to BPD public information officer Sgt. Eric Celedon, there is an administrative investigation into the officers involved but that no officers are on administrative leave because of this incident.
Heath and his wife plan to file a claim against BPD for use of excessive force and racial profiling. Attorneys Daniel Rodriguez and Joel Andreesen from Rodriguez & Associates are assisting Heath and his wife prepare their claims.
“There’s only one conclusion you can come to when you review this and that is racial profiling,” Rodriguez said during a press conference at his office on Jan. 5. “What they’ve done to Donte may be the tip of the iceberg. I hope not but just what I’ve seen from the social media, this happens way too much.”
In an interview with The Californian on Jan. 5, BPD Assistant Chief Brent Stratton said there was no evidence of racial profiling the night Heath was pulled over.
“Racial profiling is something that’s absolutely explicitly forbidden within our department. There is no indication of this occurring,” Stratton said.
No lawsuits have been filed related to the incident as of Friday, according to Kern County Superior Court records.
Heath’s pretrial hearing for his misdemeanor case was postponed to Sept. 13.
