By: Tadi Abedje

This is just another recurring instance of police officers abusing unarmed African Americans. The incident took place on May 31, 2019, when a Louisiana state trooper struck a Black man 18 times with a flashlight. The video showing the incident was hidden from the public for over two years. 

Aaron Larry Bowman was heard saying that he wasn’t resisting at a traffic stop when he was brutalized by officer Jacob Brown. As a result, Bowman suffered a broken jaw, three broken ribs, a broken wrist and a gash on his head which required six stitches, according to the Associated Press. 

Bowman’s incident came just weeks after police troopers beat up another Black man by the name of Ronald Greene, who passed away while in police custody. Just like in Bowman’s situation, video of Greene’s death was kept hidden until AP acquired it. 

RELATED: AP: Trooper kicked, dragged Black man who died in custody

The 31-year-old Brown alleged that Bowman struck a deputy and the hits he gave to Bowman were “pain compliance” to get him arrested, according to KATC 3. He also has a history of brutality, as he was responsible for 23 use-of-force incidents from 2015 to 2019, and 19 of them were against Black people.  

RELATED: State Trooper Receives No Indictment for Killing Black Driver

Brown resigned in March of this year and is facing charges of second-degree battery and malfeasance for the beating of Bowman. 

For Bowman, this incident traumatized him as he recently watched the footage. 

“I would want nobody to go through that,” he said in a AP video. 

RELATED: Picture of four armed white cops with Black suspect causes outrage in Mississippi

If you or someone you know is struggling from trauma triggered by this story, resources are available here.