Handcuffed Man Dies After NJ Police Beat and Sic Dog on Him

A Vineland, New Jersey man is dead after being beaten by police and taken into custody.  He was reportedly resisting arrest and tried to take an officer’s gun, and afterward, was beaten while handcuffed and unconscious on the ground. Cumberland County police have confirmed that Phillip White, 32, was being arrested Tuesday morning, although the reason is unclear.  Witnesses say he was attempting to resist arrest, at which point, the police became extremely physical with him.

“He was resisting,” said Agustin Ayala, who was driving down the street when he suddenly spotted the incident.

Ayala says that upon watching the officers assault White, he told them to stop, after which they told him, “You didn’t see him try to take my gun.”

Another witness, Ricardo Garcia, told NBC10 that the officers’ brutally beat White and even sicced their K9 on him.

“They punched him, stomped him, kicked him and then they let the dog out of the car,” said Garcia. “The dog bit him on his face and around his body. There’s no call for that. Once a man is handcuffed and unconscious, you should have stuck him in the patrol car and take him to the police station. Instead they decided to beat him right here.”

According to a statement from the prosecutor’s office, authorities called for medical assistance after citing that White was under “respiratory distress.” He was transported to the hospital, where he died shortly after.

The Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office and state police are investigating the situation, and Police Chief Timothy Codispoti is asking that anyone who has information about the incident contact the prosecutor’s office.

“Our sincere thoughts and prayers are with the family of the deceased and with the officers involved,” Codispoti said in a statement Tuesday. “At this time updates regarding the progress of this investigation are being released through the prosecutor’s office.”

White’s family is saddened by what happened to him, and are seeking to make sense of it all.

“Why, what he was doing, I don’t know,” White’s aunt, Valerie White, told NBC10. “I’m trying to get answers and closure now. He lived a street life but he was a human being. Bottom line.”