A viral video has angered the Army. A Black man was walking through The Summit at Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina when he was reportedly attacked by a White man. In a two-minute video that surfaced online, the Black man is seen telling his aggressor that he isn’t doing anything wrong. “You’re in the wrong neighborhood,” said the White man. “Get out!”
The Black man keeps his composure as his foe yells in his face, telling him to walk away and threatening him with violence. The White man asks him where he lives and demands his address. A woman recording, allegedly the White man’s wife, is heard yelling, “Maybe we should walk you home.”
The video vexed the public who began sharing it by the thousands. It caught the attention of the Richland County Sheriff’s Department and soon, the intimidating figure in the video was identified as Sgt. Jonathan Pentland. The 42-year-old was arrested and charged with assault and battery in the third degree for allegedly slapping the man’s phone out of his hand—an incident not captured on video but was told to authorities by witnesses. Pentland was later released.
Fort Jackson officials have denounced Pentland’s behavior and said in a statement that his actions are “not consistent with Army values.” Fort Jackson Commander Brig. Gen. Milford Beagle, Jr. added that “the leaders at Fort Jackson in no way condone the behavior depicted in the video posted recently. This action deeply impacts our community–the neighbors in the Summit, the city of Columbia, Richland & Lexington counties, and our Army family.”
“I ask that our communities and leaders exercise a degree of patience, affording Sherriff Lott and law enforcement investigators to account for the full measure of events before, during, and after the incident that was recorded.” Watch the video of Pentland below.
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