Social-Sci Scandal with Western Police follow-up

The University PR people are in full force today after last nights Youtube video sparked uproar amongst thousands across the Western campus. A video was taken showing several cops beating up an individual within the social science building. Here's what the university had to say:

"Campus police got calls from students and faculty around 5 p.m. Wednesday alerting them to a disoriented and violent student on the eighth floor of the social sciences building, said campus police director Elgin Austen. The student had become confrontational in a PhD student’s eighth-floor office, then barricaded himself in a professor’s office on the seventh floor. When two campus police officers confronted him there, Mr. Austen said, the student attacked them with his fists and fled. He was again confronted by half a dozen campus and London police officers on the building’s main floor."

The response goes on to discuss the man's violent past, with several past incidents at the school.

However, the main concern has been the level of police brutality witnessed within the video. The UWO community consensus has been that it does not take six cops to take down one man, no matter how much he's resisting. The continual beating, use of batons and fists was unnecessary in apprehending this man.

Campus Police have responded:

“Our officers and London Police officers were dealing with a disoriented and violent young person who clearly required help,” said Gitta Kulczycki, Vice-President, Resources & Operations at Western.

“Our officers did what they needed to do to ensure that he and others around him were safe.”

“As always, we will examine our actions and will work with London Police to ensure that use of force was appropriate,” said Kulczyck

Is this enough though to justify campus police actions? Perhaps the video makes it out worse than it actually was. However, I as a 21 year old boy know that I would not stand a chance against 6 police officers, no matter what fight I put up. So why all the force?

The full University response can be found here:

http://communications.uwo.ca/com/western_news/stories/violet_suspect_arrested_20091015444984/

The initial video can be seen in the previous post.