The Syracuse Police Department is facing questions about a traffic stop where two Black men were taken into custody. The incident was caught on tape and shared on social media. Now, community members are speaking out.

On Wednesday, police say Jaumar Chandler, 21, says he and his friend, Antal Tatum, 22, were stopped for driving with tinted windows on Syracuse’s southside. Seven officers were at the scene.

“We were worried for our life,” said Chandler. “We were like, why are there all these many cops? What [did we do]? We did not do nothing wrong.”

The Syracuse Police Department says Chandler and Tatum were stopped for vehicle and traffic violations. Police say neither of them had a valid driver license, and officers began to take an inventory of the vehicle.

During this time, the SPD says the two men were free to walk around and use their cellphones, but had not been searched and were asked to keep their distance from the officers and keep their hands visible. The SPD says Chandler refused to comply with that request and was handcuffed and placed and in the back of the police car, where police say he allegedly threatened to spit on and shoot the officer.

When he was let out of the vehicle with his handcuffs removed, things escalated. The SPD says Chandler spat in the direction of the officer, but Chandler says the action wasn’t directed at anyone.

“I really couldn't talk. Like, I had a lot of, like, I was about to spit all that, so I spit on the floor a little bit. And then I guess (he) said I spit on him,” recalled Chandler. “He threw me on the floor, and then my friend. Like, dang, why y'all doing that to him? They threw him on the floor and as I'm on the floor, he said I'm resisting arrest, but I couldn't even do nothing.” 

The SPD has their own side of the story. A statement from the department says that after Chandler spat, “The officer then proceeded to take Chandler to the ground and arrest him for harassment. Officers gave multiple verbal commands for Chandler to place his hands behind his back, which he refused to do,” the statement continues, “At this time, three controlled strikes were directed to his head and face in order to get him to lift his hands so officers could take his wrists and place him back into handcuffs.”

The SPD says that when done correctly, the controlled strikes are “within policy and within DCJS standards.”

Chandler was eventually taken to the police department and charged with resisting arrest and harassing a police officer. He says he suffered multiple injuries during the incident, but claims he was told by police he had to walk to the hospital for treatment. The SPD, however, says Chandler refused medical treatment. 

“I’m traumatized, like stuff like that's not supposed to happen,” said Chandler. “I don’t want that to happen again. I’m going to try to avoid them as much as possible.”

The department does have a “Use of Force” policy, which requires an officer on scene to determine that force is “objectively reasonable.” 

Chandler’s mom, Lataya Dixon, says she feels her son was unfairly targeted.

“He goes to work and comes home, like he might go to the store and hang out with his couple of friends from school,” said Dixon. “But I just feel like they just get targeted and it's just not right.”

Community members are also raising concerns about alleged racial profiling.

“If you’re a person of color, you’re almost definitely going to be stopped, harassed, spoken to in a different manner,” said L. Micah Dexter, a pastor at the church right near where the incident happened.

“We're tired. We don't want to have to be looking behind our backs when we're walking down the street or worrying about our kids, if our kids are safe just walking to maybe to the bus stop or to the store,” said Latawana Wood, a Syracuse resident. “This has to stop.”

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh also commented on the incident, but only to say that he has seen the video and will be reviewing police bodycam footage as well.

Chandler is waiting on an investigation from Syracuse’s Citizen Review Board before he decides on taking any legal action.