CAMDEN COUNTY, Ga. — The North Carolina man who claims he was beaten by deputies inside the Camden County jail shares his story. The video shows 41-year-old Jarrett Hobbs has been seen countless times.
It shows at least five deputies walking into the cell trying to restrain him, then hitting him, then dragging him out while they continued to strike.
Hobbs spoke with Action News Jax’s sister station, WSOC in Charlotte, North Carolina.
“It was a really was a scary situation for anybody to go through, honestly. I had George Floyd on mind the whole time going through it because I didn’t want to fall to the ground,” Hobbs said.
Hobbs’ attorneys have released full videos of before and after the encounter, there’s no audio in two of the videos but Hobbs is seen sitting down, standing up near the door and talking. he then picks something up off the bench in the cell; moments later deputies walk in.
After the incident, Hobbs is strapped into a restraint chair and what appears to be forcefully pushed back into the cell. Attorneys said he never got medical treatment.
WSOC was interviewing Hobbs’ fiancee when he called her from jail using video conference.
“I just want people to know that I didn’t do anything wrong to provoke whatever they said I did,” Hobbs said. “I was on suicide watch going through a mental health crisis. So, no matter what I did, I wasn’t a threat to them, myself, or no one around.”
According to Camden County jail records, Hobbs had been arrested for speeding, driving with a suspended/revoked license, and possession of a controlled substance on Sept. 3rd. Attorneys said after this happened, he was charged with assault.
We learned that five deputies are now on paid leave, none were disciplined until Monday after the video came out.
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