AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – When a younger man has a psychological well being disaster in his own residence, his mother thought deputies would assist her get him to the hospital.

As a substitute, he was punched and put in handcuffs.

That mom informed the I-TEAM she now regrets ever calling the Richmond County Sheriff’s Workplace for assist.

“That’s in all probability the worst telephone name that I’ve ever made in my life,” stated LaSonya Grandstaff.

Not lengthy after our I-TEAM began asking questions, the Augusta District Lawyer’s Workplace dropped his prices, so all this 2021 incident actually did was delay his remedy.

One in 5 adults has a psychological sickness, so it’s doable somebody you like may find yourself in a scenario similar to this.

That’s why our I-TEAM’s Meredith Anderson is asking: when is a disaster – against the law?

Kirkland Grandstaff wanted drugs – not a mugshot.

Granted, deputies will not be medical doctors, nor ought to we count on them to be, however when the household contacted us to look into what occurred to Kirkland Grandstaff, we reviewed the physique digicam video and noticed a deputy punching Grandstaff within the head a number of instances as he was being arrested.

When the I-TEAM went digging, we discovered this deputy is probably going much more ready than most to be on a psychological well being name.

He has a university diploma in psychology and coaching for one thing like this.

So, how did this go so very unsuitable?

When deputies race to a scene, they usually don’t know what they’re strolling into, nevertheless it appears on at the present time, they did have some very important data.

LaSonya Grandstaff met them exterior and calmly gave them the identical data she gave dispatch.

LaSonya Grandstaff: “He’s 24. We’ve been to Aur — Aurora twice. We’ve been MCG. They wouldn’t admit him. We went over to Medical doctors, August the 14th.”

She says she didn’t name 911 as a result of she didn’t actually think about this an emergency. “I stated, all I want you to do is to return and assist help me get him to a facility or hospital.”

The bodycam footage exhibits what occurred subsequent.

Unnamed second deputy: “Kirkland, can we speak to you? Are you able to come out and speak to us?”

Kirkland: “No. I can’t. I’m not speaking to anyone.”

When deputies transfer in nearer, it seems one holds again laughter.

Kirkland: “I don’t want no one chatting with me. I’m bare. Please don’t are available my room.”

Kirkland cracks the door, briefly and says, “You assume I’m attractive?”

Deputy: “No.”

Kirkland, “Okay, properly there you go.”

Most of this dialog occurs via a closed door.

Kirkland: “I simply need y’all to depart – to be trustworthy. I simply need y’all to depart.”

Unnamed second deputy: “We’re not going to depart till we all know for a truth that you simply’re a-ok.”

That appears to work and Kirkland will get dressed.

Kirkland: “So, I’ll keep in on the door and speak to you.”

Deputy White: “Yeah. Okay. Admire it, man.”

Kirkland: “I’m not doing anything.”

Deputy White: “What’s occurring? What’s occurring?”

Kirkland: “And my telephone? I don’t belief this girl I’m residing with proper now. So yeah, I’ll speak to you proper now. How are you doing?”

Deputy White: “Doing fairly good. Doing fairly good.”

Unnamed second deputy: “I’m effective, sir.”

Kirkland Grandstaff isn’t effective, although.

He tells deputies he’s an artist, and, as he describes his work, he additionally paints an image of his psychological state.

Kirkland: “There’s the nice wolf and there’s the unhealthy wolf. There’s this one wolf that feeds nothing however good intention and positivity. Peace and sh** like that, after which there’s the opposite one – which is me proper now – who’s all about feeding chaos – feeling, feeding strife, and feeding distress, and issues like that.”

He admits to breaking an image body and repeatedly asks deputies to depart.

Kirkland: “Them footage, I may grasp – I may grasp the b**** again up…I don’t give a f***…okay.” (shuts the door) I’ll speak to y’all later. I don’t give a f*** about that…you understand. Oh, so now you being aggressive.”

Unnamed second deputy: “Yeah.”

Deputy White: “Yeah.”

Subsequent, you may hear a scuffle and you’ll hear the second deputy yell – “Maintain him at his neck!” “Someone assist me.”

Kirkland yells. “Ma, assist me, please! Someone assist me! Assist me! Assist me! Please assist me! Assist me, please! Assist me, please!”

Deputy White hits Kirkland 4 instances.

The opposite deputy yells, “No! Don’t…don’t.”

LaSonya Grandstaff finds all of it arduous to relive in our interview. We sat down together with her final yr.

“I simply hear this scuffle. And I am going operating down the hallway. And I see Deputy White hitting my son a number of instances within the head and I stated, whoa, that’s not what I referred to as you for,” she stated. “And he turned and he checked out me and he stated, properly, he hit me first.”

Unnamed second deputy: “You’ve bought a cost of legal trespass.”

Kirkland: “Prison trespass? That is my home.”

Unnamed second deputy: “You possibly can’t tear up stuff.”

Kirkland: “That is my home.”

Deputy White: “and I’m charging you with felony obstruction.”

In line with the arrest warrant, the legal trespass cost is as a result of he “deliberately induced harm to at least one image body.”

Which means deputies pushed their manner into the 24-year-old’s room, realizing he was fighting a psychological well being disaster, to place him in handcuffs for breaking one thing in his own residence.

Unnamed second deputy: “What number of image frames did he break?”

LaSonya Grandstaff: “It was simply that one. And I imply, it was an image of him.”

Unnamed second deputy: “I imply, I noticed a bunch of glass.”

LaSonya Grandstaff: “It was only a image of him.”

When Grandstaff’s mom asks deputies concerning the cost, she will get a distinct reply.

LaSonya: “Have they got to cost him with legal trespassing?”

Unnamed second deputy: “It’s, it’s a type of household violence. I used to be making an attempt to not even need to go that route however as a result of he wouldn’t de-escalate. We in all probability may’ve performed one thing else, however anytime that it pertains to household violence, we don’t have any leeway on that.”

After we sat down for this interview a yr in the past, Kirkland was nonetheless in jail. He stayed there for 2 weeks. Throughout these two weeks, jail data present he didn’t get the remedy his mom referred to as deputies to assist in the primary place.

LaSonya Grandstaff: “In the event you couldn’t deal with it, why even attempt to enter that room? You already know, why even undergo all of all the pieces that occurred? After which with the result of labeling my son as a violent legal?”

In line with one incident report, the violence was a quote “temporary wrestle” the place Kirkland was “taken into custody with out additional incident.”

Nevertheless, Deputy Benjamin White’s incident report says Kirkland “struck him within the face.”

Whereas the physique cam video exhibits Kirkland thrashing round and resisting being arrested, the I-TEAM couldn’t discover any video clips the place Kirkland punched Deputy White.

What’s caught on digicam? Deputy White punching Kirkland a number of instances, although a few of the punches are partially off-camera as a result of the physique cam seems to have fallen off throughout the wrestle.

We are able to’t measure how arduous Deputy White’s punches are, however he does make a number of references on the physique cam video to ache in his hand.

In the meantime, Kirkland additionally says his head hurts.

Cpl. John Scott is heard saying to EMS: “He’s a sign 16, psychological affected person. He fought with these two. Within the course of, he bought a few strikes to the pinnacle. No seen accidents.”

Gold Cross Medic: “So, what’s occurring?”

Kirkland: “Sir. I don’t even know. My head hurts.”

He’s ultimately cleared to go to jail, however the screening seems to solely give attention to his doable head harm, maybe to see if he has a concussion.

The one medical reference to his psychological state comes right here:

Cpl. John Scott: “We’re not professionals. We are able to’t say oh, yeah, he’s not culpable. As a result of he broke, you understand, as a result of he’s mentally in poor health. However depart that as much as you understand, individuals receives a commission higher than us.”

Deputies inform Kirkland he’ll get assist ultimately.

Deputy: “You perceive what I’m saying? You gotta be in your finest conduct.”

Kirkland (crying): “I don’t. As a result of I by no means wished any of this for myself.”

Deputy: “I do know. I do know. We’re going to get you taken care of. We’re going to get you some assist.”

Kirkland: “I need assistance. I don’t must go to jail. I need assistance.”

Deputy: “I do know.”

In the meantime, Deputy White has to submit a use of power report as a result of he hit Kirkland.

In line with that report, Deputy White’s supervisor notes Kirkland “struck Deputy White within the face” and that his “arduous hand methods” – or punches have been “justified and obligatory.”

Even earlier than that report is made, physique cam captures the 2 speaking about Deputy White’s observe report with use of power.

Deputy White: “Welcome to B/C rotation.”

Cpl. Scott: “A/D is similar manner.”

Deputy White: “It’s Zone 5 is what it’s.”

Cpl. Scott “No. It’s you is what it’s. No, individuals don’t such as you (laughs.)”

The I-TEAM requested all of Deputy White’s use of power studies.

Seems, he has six whole within the two years he’s been a deputy. Every time supervisors conclude the Deputy’s use of power is justified.

Meredith Anderson: “I don’t assume we are able to count on officers to be psychologists. You already know, they’re not medical doctors.”

LaSonya Grandstaff: “Proper.”

Meredith Anderson “However does it make it worse to you that they knew the scenario strolling into it?”

LaSonya Grandstaff: “Sure, it does.”

In line with his linked-in web page, Deputy White does have a university diploma in psychology.

He lists a BA in Psychology/Sociology from Augusta College.

On high of that, data the I-TEAM obtained from the Georgia Public Security Coaching Middle present he’s additionally had coaching in disaster intervention.

In March of 2021, he handed the 40-hour class that focuses solely on how regulation enforcement responds to calls about psychological well being.

The incident with Kirkland occurred months later after he accomplished that coaching.

LaSonya Grandstaff says it’s all unsettling. “We have now to cease making excuses for law enforcement officials and saying that they’re not educated.”

Three days after this interview, Lasonya Grandstaff despatched me a textual content message, letting me know they’re formally dropping the costs, and Kirkland was lastly in a remedy hospital in Atlanta. Court docket paperwork present there did “not look like adequate proof to show guilt past an affordable doubt.”

It additionally famous Kirkland’s “underlying mental-health concern” was being actively addressed in an in-patient hospital.”

LaSonya Grandstaff says she’s nonetheless haunted by the result of her cry for assist. “I ended up with 5 police vehicles in entrance of my home — 5 deputies in my home. And all I may take into consideration, if all of them go in that room, my son will not be going to return out of there. We’re gonna be calling the coroner.”

As a substitute, now, LaSonya Grandstaff is asking for change.

She says we should do a greater job getting these in disaster to a hospital as an alternative of placing them in handcuffs.

Numbers present these with a psychological sickness are 16 instances extra more likely to be killed by regulation enforcement.

These with an untreated psychological sickness are concerned in no less than one in each 4 deadly police shootings.

Tonight, Kirkland’s mom remains to be grateful he’s alive.

We did attain out to Richmond County Sheriff Richard Roundtree, and he declined to touch upon this, nevertheless it’s essential to notice, we’re shining a lightweight on Kirkland’s case not simply to take a look at this one case or anybody regulation enforcement company.

We hope it begins a dialog about how all native businesses reply to calls about psychological well being points and the way possibly we are able to all work collectively to make it a greater expertise for everybody concerned.

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