By Crescenzo Vellucci
Vanguard Sacramento Bureau
SACRAMENTO – Caleb Macon is headed to jury trial here in mid-January, and faces years in jail after a simple traffic stop morphed into something much bigger – rather than just being cited, Macon was handcuffed, and arrested, along with his wife and brother.
Now Macon, who is Black, is charged with two counts of resisting arrest for delaying, resisting or obstructing a peace officer. Each count carries with it as much as one year in jail.
How did a simple traffic ticket escalate to multiple arrests, traumatized children and jury trial?
Black Lives Matter Sacramento maintains the Sacramento Police Dept. is at fault and is demanding
“systemic change” in the department in its treatment of Black residents.
BLM said Macon and his family, including his daughter, were “brutalized” by the Sacramento Police Dept. that evening in 
yet another example of the SPD’s targeting of Blacks in the community, noting the high number of Black men – including Stephon Clark, who was unarmed – killed by Sacramento city police or county sheriff’s deputies.
A dramatic video of the incident provided by “CopWatch” – and obtained by the Vanguard – appears to show SPD officers making the arrest of Caleb Macon, and then turning to arrest his wife and brother, all while a child cries in the background.
The video vividly shows the Black family confronted by more than a half dozen Sacramento Police Dept. officers at a traffic stop.
Initially, Caleb Macon, apologizing to police for asking them questions and maintaining his innocence, is handcuffed. Then his brother, checking the status of his sibling, is handcuffed and then police target Caleb’s wife Lashaun Royal, and arrest her – she also suffered a concussion and had her hair pulled out by SPD, said BLM. The family’s teen daughter is shoved to the ground.
“Caleb Macon was brutalized and arrested. His wife was brutalized and arrested. His brother was brutalized and arrested. His daughter was pushed to the ground while being traumatized,” said Tanya Faison, of BLM Sacramento at a news conference in front of the City of Sacramento’s City Hall recently.
Faison and BLM Sacramento released a list of demands, including a demand for all SPD audio and video, including body-cameras of the SPD officers involved, all video and audio of the Sacramento Sheriff’s department’s officers and helicopter and the names of all the officers involved.
“We demand that the Sacramento Police Department stop terrorizing Black families that have members that are on, or have been on parole or probation (and) stop using infraction and misdemeanor 
stops to criminalize Black community that are in, and outside, predominately Black neighborhoods,” said Faison.
“Officers found to have engaged in abusive behavior towards Black people in the community they patrol should be immediately removed and barred from any further engagement in that community,” added Faison.
Faison also charges “SacPD officers (should) remain professional during interactions with the communities they police (and) stop using abusive language and tactics toward Black community members and when officers engaging in predatory behavior that is clearly without legal cause, that they be sanctioned (and) stop using retaliatory methods that intentionally keep Black community members in control of, and beholden to, the current criminal system.”
Black Lives Matter Sacramento is also asking that “when abuse and trauma has been inflicted on the members of families, particularly children, compensation should be provided for mental health treatment either directly funded by the Police Department or the City of Sacramento.”
Finally, Black Lives Matter Sacramento also demanded that all charges be dismissed “when the original arrest was never warranted…it’s a violation of Caleb’s civil rights.”
So, I looked at the video and observed what appeared to me as resisting arrest (combined with goading the officers, who showed restraint).
The video did not show what led to the initial arrest.
The video might actually be a better example of the reason that police departments are reportedly having challenges regarding recruitment.
Basic illustration as to why you don’t want a 50-plus year old white man on your jury. What you have here is a basic failure of the police at de-escalation and it turns a basic traffic stop and citation into something a lot worse.
How about a fifty-plus year old Jew who may appear white to you?
An outright racist and ageist statement. It is not the first time you’ve made such statements.
It’s time to call this exactly what it is.
The truth hurts as they say. Basically you have a man who committed a traffic violation and instead of asking how it was that the police escalated it to an arrest, you immediately jump in with “he’s resisting.” For what? Asking the police questions?
Folks who make racist comments (such as the comment you made to me) are, by definition, racists.
From what I recall, you are the only person on this blog who has ever made directly racist statements.
You’re not really getting this. If you’re this guy’s defense attorney, you don’t want you on the jury. That’s just a fact. You can’t empathize with the defendant. You immediately jump in to defend the police here even though it’s pretty clear they mishandled this pretty badly.
You didn’t answer the question: would you want yourself on that jury pool if you’re the defense?
I wouldn’t want you on the Jury if I was the prosecutor.
Crescenzo Vellucci asks: “How did a simple traffic ticket escalate to multiple arrests, traumatized children and jury trial?:
It seems that the main reason things escalated is that people got out of the car.
It is sad that more people (of all races) don’t make their kids watch this great video that will help them in life:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEEyzZSN2tk
Ken: I think my problem would be with how the police handled the situation. I know a lot of police that could have calmed it down at that point, not escalated it.
I only looked at the video once, but I did not see any escalation by the officers. I observed restraint while enduring goading.
De-escalating hostility is a different matter. Those techniques can be helpful, but require skill to apply. I suspect this will be an area of increasing focus by police departments, in the years to come.
I did note that the man that was arrested reacted differently to the female officer. The reason for that is not clear.
Ken A, thanks for that hilarious Chris Rock video — that was the first smile for my pretend holiday weekend. And a perfect response to the article and video.
(Just over a week to Anonygeddon)
I second Alan’s thanks…
A third thanks. I was too “preoccupied” with another commenter on this thread, to look at the video that Ken provided a link to, earlier. Never would have looked at it, had others not pointed it out.
Very funny video.
I know it’s humorous but the Chris Rock video makes some really good points.
Amen… I’ve often found that humor, and music/poetry can unfold truths that normal prose cannot… humor can get past ‘defenses’… Movie/TV show M*A*S*H is a good example… Dad and I loved it… Dad served in the Pacific in WWII as a medic… he loved both levels of those…
Yeah, as we approach Anonygeddon, feel a need to wax philosophic… 80% sure I’ll not be contributing, except via David and some others… [waiting for the cheers to die down]…
Again, thank you Ken A… great “present”…
Best wishes to all…
I do not doubt that SPD are racist and horrible at their jobs… but this video doesn’t make that clear to me… Maybe poor editing but it looked like those being arrested were creating most the drama – HOWEVER – if they were creating the drama because they were being wrongfully stopped and arrested; they cannot be faulted… What is anyone to do when being victimized by someone else’s abuse of power? Be respectful and compliant?
This sort of thinking is harmful to most the world….
I guess more footage would be needed to make this incident clear to me.
I definitely think cops need more cultural sensitivity training.
In the past 3 years I have lost all trust in cops and authority figures… I dont like them but I dont envy their position either. We still need them, but they must do better.