Recorded Barnstable Police Stop Raises Tactical Concerns: Report

BARNSTABLE, MA — A video showing Barnstable officers making an arrest at gunpoint with children present has raised questions about appropriate police tactics. The video stemmed from a May 13 arrest, where police had a warrant for Tanya Devine's 18-year-old son Daishawn Williams. Williams was charged with rape and assault charges in connection to a May 2 incident at a Hyannis Hotel. But Devine told the Cape Cod Times police made the arrest while she was out running errands with her son and her two youngest children, ages 4 and 5.

Devine said several police cruisers and undercover police cars surrounded her vehicle, and officer had their guns pointed before Williams had a chance to stop the car. Devine said she feared for her and her children's lives. Deputy Police Chief Mark Cabral told the Cape Cod Times the reason officers executed the search warrant in public was they believed Williams may have been armed. So officers waited for him to leave the house before arresting him. Cabral said it's safer for officers to make the arrest outside the home because it reduces the chance of conflict. Police said they found no guns when searching Devine's house.

Devine recorded the police encounter. Her video, which is no longer public, shows an officer with his gun pointed toward the ground, ordering Williams to "get out of the car." Before Williams got out, Devine stepped out of the car and asked the officer, "What is the reason for this?"

"I'm nervous right now for my life," Devine says in the video, as officers ask her to step back while three officers hold their guns up.

The video ends with a police officer ordering Devin to get down on her knees, while another officer takes her phone.

For more on this story, check out the Cape Cod Times.