CINCINNATI (Rich Jaffe) - 29-year-old Charles Harrell's video of a Cincinnati Police officer he claimed was following him, then arrested for him for allegedly jay walking on a downtown Cincinnati street, has become national news. On March 1 Harrell uploaded a video, from February, of himself walking in Over-The-Rhine after grabbing a cup of coffee. In the video, Harrell says, "This is what we have to go through in Cincinnati -- harassment. Can't even be a black man, enjoy your morning because the police going to harass you. Cincinnati, Ohio." Harrell then showed the officer in the frame slowly riding his bike behind. About 31 seconds into the video, Officer Osterman approached Harrell and alleged Harrell crossed against the light. WARNING VIDEO CONTAINS GRAPHIC LANGUAGE Let me repost this I want the world to see how cincinnati police free black people in their own community this is... Posted by Chris Harrell on, Tuesday, March 1, 2016 The video racked up over 200,000 views in less than 48 hours. The Cincinnati Police Department released the following statement after Local 12 reached out for comment. Was Charles Harrell unfairly targeted by police? What does his video really show? Did he say nasty things about the judge on Facebook? And best question of all, will he sue the city and police department? Charles Harrell shot the video with his phone Feb. 6. It showed a Cincinnati police officer on a bike arresting him in Over-The-Rhine after the officer said he noticed the smell of marijuana. Harrell allegedly walked against the light when he crossed the street. The recording showed him arguing with the officers, resisting arrest, while claiming they violated his constitutional rights. In court Friday, March 4, Harrell, or someone with him, allegedly violated courthouse rules and shot a picture of the officers and posted it on Facebook. A picture which has since disappeared. Unpleasant comments about the judge were also made on Harrell's Facebook page too, leading to what's called an "indirect contempt charge." The judge, Heather Russell, Tuesday told Harrell and his attorney, "Once the court was able to see your postings I think also perhaps there were tweets, what the court saw were Facebook postings where you made reference to me, personally." Those comments have been removed. But Harrell's attorney asked the judge to recuse herself from the cases. Judge Russell agreed. When police searched harrell, they found marijuana on him. He pleaded guilty to a drug charge, but withdrew that plea Tuesday and a mistrial was declared. The charges are awaiting a new judge. Harrell's criminal attorney said his client never thought the case would get so much attention. Outside the courtroom attorney Will Oswall told Local 12 News he looked forward to getting a new judge on the case and getting the arresting officer back on the stand. "Well from seeing the video and from his testimony in the trial that was just declared a mistrial, he said the obstruction of justice was the 2 to 3 seconds when Mr. Harrell had his hands in his pockets. And when you ask for someone's ID, to be 2 to 3 seconds it may take you that long. So I'm happy to put this in front of a jury." Harrell hired a well-known attorney to handle his pending civil case. The contempt charge on Harrell is a no-bond situation. He will sit in jail at least until the next judge hears his case. The new judge will be Richard Bernat, and the next set of hearings is scheduled to start Thursday morning, March 10, at 9 a.m.

• published: 16 Mar 2016
• views: 5582