Belmar Police release body cam video of surfer use of force arrested on beach after viral videos
By: -----
Police have revealed new details and body camera footage on what they said led up to the arrest of a surfer at a beach in Belmar, New Jersey.
Cell phone video of part of the encounter made the rounds on social media, capturing officers pinning a surfer to the ground, allegedly over a beach badge.
Liam Mahoney, a 28-year-old Belmar native now living in California, was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and obstruction of justice. He was also issued a borough ordinance for Beach Badge Required.
Video of that encounter has stirred controversy, with some beachgoers calling the officers' conduct, an overreaction to a minor issue.
"Everyone knows he had a beach badge, but surfers cannot wear them on their wetsuits because it will destroy their expensive wetsuits," said beachgoer Bart Yarnold.
However, Belmar Police Chief Tina Scott on Thursday, provided additional context on the moments leading up to Mahoney's arrest, which was documented in police body camera footage posted on the Belmar Police Department Facebook page.
Scott says that during the week, officers received multiple complaints about surfers illegally entering the beach across the dunes. She says that gate attendants requested the surfers to show their beach badge, which costs $12 a day, but their requests were ignored.
On Tuesday, officers assigned to the beachfront approached Mahoney and asked him for his badge. The body camera shows Mahoney say, "I do not need one."
When the officer asks Mahoney for his identification to issue him a summons, the video shows Mahoney refuse and begin to walk away.
The officer then informed Mahoney that he was not free to leave and told him that he would be placed under arrest if he did not cooperate.
The officer continued to follow Mahoney, asking him multiple times to drop his surfboard, before eventually grabbing the surfboard from Mahoney so that he could be placed under arrest.
In the process of trying to place handcuffs on the 28-year-old, the officer pins Mahoney to the ground before placing him under arrest.
Police Chief Scott says that Mahoney was not arrested for not having a beach badge, but because he obstructed the officer's investigation by refusing to give his identification and information.
She says the arrest is currently under review.