California woman accuses San Diego Sheriff’s Deputy David Lovejoy of Pulling Her Hair During A Traffic Stop
A San Diego Sheriff’s Department deputy has been accused of pulling a woman by the hair during a traffic stop. The woman filed a complaint at sheriff’s headquarters on Monday after joining civil rights leaders for a rally where they claimed a deputy is a threat to public safety according to CBS 8.
Shynita Phillips-Abu filed a claim that said Sheriff’s Deputy David Lovejoy became aggressive during a traffic stop. During the press conference, Phillips-Abu held a bag of her own hair which she said was ripped out during the stop.
“He pulled me by my hair and yanked me out of my car by force,” she said. Phillips-Abu filed a complaint after sharing her story.
“It was like he wanted to see me suffer,” she said. The incident took place on Oct. 1 when she was driving home from the post office. Phillips-Abu was
The incident occurred Oct. 1 when Phillips-Abu was driving home from the post office. She claims the deputy pulled her over for a malfunctioning brake light, however, she said the interaction got tense once she started to record it on her cell phone.
“He started to yell ‘put the phone down now,’” she told the news station. “And at that point, I became afraid”
Photos show from the video display the deputy reaching inside the vehicle. Phillips-Abu says the officer knocked the phone out of her hands when she refused to get out of the car he dragged her out by her hair, handcuffed her, and put her in the back of his police car.
“I had my hands behind my back for 6 hours straight,” she said. “My body was so swollen and bruised.”
A statement from the San Diego Sheriff’s Department says:
“We are aware of the incident and have initiated an investigation into the matter. We do not want to come to any conclusions until we have all of the facts.”