A disturbing police bodycam video has gone viral, showing officers forcibly dragging a paralyzed man from his vehicle — despite his desperate pleas that he couldn’t move his legs. The footage, which has now been viewed millions of times across social media, has sparked national outrage and renewed debate over police training and disability awareness.
The incident took place during a traffic stop on September 30, 2021. Officers pulled over a man in his 30s who was reportedly suspected of involvement in a minor traffic violation. When asked to step out of the vehicle, the driver calmly explained that he was paralyzed and physically unable to comply.
“Sir, I can’t get out. I’m paralyzed,” he told the officers multiple times, his voice shaking.
Instead of de-escalating, the officers continued to insist he exit the vehicle — threatening to pull him out if he refused. Within seconds, the situation turned physical.
The bodycam footage captures one officer grabbing the man by his arm while another attempts to lift him by his upper body. The man cries out repeatedly, saying,
“You’re hurting me! I can’t use my legs!”
But his words seemed to fall on deaf ears.
Despite his protests, the officers dragged him from the driver’s seat, his legs hanging limp as he was forced onto the pavement. The video then shows the man lying helplessly on the ground while officers handcuff him and search the vehicle.
The man, identified later as Clifford Owensby, was a resident of Dayton, Ohio. According to police reports, they had stopped him as part of a narcotics investigation and wanted to bring in a K-9 unit to search his car. Owensby, however, had committed no violent crime — and repeatedly explained that he needed assistance due to his disability.
The release of the footage has caused widespread public outrage. Advocacy groups, including the NAACP and disability rights organizations, condemned the officers’ actions as “inhumane and indefensible.”
“There is no excuse for dragging a paralyzed man from his car like an object,” one activist said. “This shows a complete lack of compassion — and a failure in police training.”
The Dayton Police Department later issued a statement saying the incident was “under internal review.” However, that has done little to calm public anger.
Social media users have flooded the department’s comment sections with demands for accountability.
“You can hear him begging and explaining he’s paralyzed — what more did they need to stop?” one commenter wrote.
“This is why people fear law enforcement,” another added.
Owensby has since filed a civil rights lawsuit against the city and the officers involved, claiming emotional trauma, physical injury, and violation of his constitutional rights.
As the investigation continues, the video stands as yet another painful reminder of what can happen when authority overrides empathy.
One viewer summed it up perfectly:
“He wasn’t resisting. He was paralyzed. And they treated him like he was lying.”
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