Ex-NFL player claims cop ‘terrified’ him, gun to head; police show dashcam, demand apology

lamar-lathamThe shoe is now on the other foot for a former pro football player who wanted an apology from police.

After former Houston Oilers player Lamar Lathon said an officer had pulled a gun on him during a traffic stop, police released a dash-cam video of the incident — and now they’re the ones demanding an apology.

The incident occurred Sept. 1 at 1:13 a.m. in a parking lot in Pearland, Texas, where Lathon, 48, was pulled over for allegedly speeding, according to WHOU-TV.

In the video, the officer is seen asking Lathon for his driver’s license and proof of insurance, and repeatedly tells him not to reach under his seat.

WHOU reported:

After asking Lathon several more times not to reach under his seat, he replaces his weapon back in its holster.

After several minutes, the officer asks Lathon to step out of his vehicle and the officer is seen searching the vehicle. The officer says in the video he pulled Lathon over for driving 65 mph in a 50 mph zone and issues him a speeding citation.

Lathon posted on Facebook and told media outlets the officer pulled a gun on him during the traffic stop. The former linebacker said he feared for life during the incident and said the police officer pointed the gun in his face.

 

Lathon later posted an entry on his Facebook page indicating that the officer had pointed a gun at him and that he was in fear for his life during the entire encounter.

“Completely terrified,” he told KHOU. “This is a situation where I was obeying a command, and it quickly got out of control.”

The Pearland Police Department fought fire with fire, releasing the dash-cam video of the incident on its own Facebook page.

“Based on review of the video footage, it is the position of the Pearland Police Department that the response of the officers involved in this traffic stop was professional and within both the law and policies of this agency,” the department said on Facebook.

“In the video, the officer was then clearly heard giving the driver three distinct orders not to reach under his seat. When the orders were ignored by the driver, the officer unholstered his weapon and held it at a low ready position near the driver’s door in preparation for the possibility of the driver drawing a weapon from under the seat.”

Now the police union is waiting for Lathan’s apology.

Watch the news footage, via KHOU, followed by the complete dash-cam footage.

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