Rapper Jay-Z is once again stepping up to legally and financially aid a family in the aftermath of a viral video that caught an escalated confrontation with police on camera.
Dravon Ames, his pregnant fiancée Iesha Harper and their two young girls were confronted by Phoenix, Arizona police officers in the parking lot of their babysitter’s apartment complex at gunpoint on Saturday, USA Today reported. One of the children, a 4-year-old, allegedly mistakenly took a $0.99 doll from a Family Dollar store, prompting police to respond, according to multiple reports.
In the video, police can be seen screaming obscenities at the family, threatening to shoot them with their guns drawn.
Since then, the philanthropic arm of Jay-Z’s Roc Nation entertainment company has hired attorney Alex Spiro to work on behalf of the family while also calling on the city for the termination of the officers involved in the incident. The lawyer is seeking to have one of the cops charged with child neglect and is also helping the family sue the city of Phoenix for $10 million in damages — $2.5 million per affected member of their family.
In the claim filed by the parents, they allege that the officers committed battery, false arrest, unlawful imprisonment and violated their civil rights.
The Phoenix Police Department has not released the names of the officers involved.
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