Officer who resigned amid excessive force investigation now working for another police agency

ATLANTA — A Channel 2 Action News investigation found a police officer accused of throwing a man with a prosthetic leg to the ground is now working as an officer at a local university.

Channel 2′s Michael Seiden learned this isn’t the first time the officer is accused of using excessive force.

The video shows an Atlanta police officer confronting Alexander who investigators said became disruptive at the Fulton County Courthouse after refusing to turn off his cellphone in May 2019.

“Who you talkin’ to?” asked a police officer in cell phone video.

“Who you talking to?” the officer asked again.

“I’m talking to you,” said Michael Alexander.

The video shows an Atlanta Police officer confronting Michael Alexander who investigators said became disruptive at the Fulton County Courthouse after he asked if he could leave his cellphone turned on in May 2019.

What began as an argument quickly escalated into violence when the officer slammed Alexander to the ground.

[HAVE A STORY FOR 2 INVESTIGATES?: Submit your tip here]

“I can’t get up,” said Alexander in the video.

“He has one leg,” said the person recording the video.

Alexander has a prosthetic leg.

“Put your hands behind your back,” the officer told Alexander.

“You threatened me, man! You put your hands in my face,” Alexander said.

Alexander filed a federal lawsuit against Officer Jasiah Lencrerot.

“When he threw me, now you know, the back of my head hit the wall. You know, he put his knee out in my back,” Alexander said.

Police arrested and charged Alexander with obstruction and disorderly conduct.

MORE STORIES FROM 2 INVESTIGATES:

• A metro man had his car repossessed because it was stolen. Problem was -- he bought it legally
• Senators fighting to get trains back on track instead of blocking Ga. families
• Army officer says squatter moved into her DeKalb home while she was on duty, now he won’t leave
• Caught on camera: Pollutant released into air, EPA says
• Atlanta woman hit with $17,000 water bill despite no leaks

In the incident report, Lencrerot accused Alexander of being the aggressor.

“Well, they arrested me for two counts of obstruction of an officer and disorderly conduct, and then the cases were thrown out,” Alexander told Seiden.

“They were thrown out?” Seiden asked.

“Yes,” Alexander said.

“Why were they thrown out?” Seiden asked.

“When they seen the video in the courtroom, the video didn’t add up to the police report,” Alexander said.

He filed a complaint with Atlanta’s Citizen Review Board. In March 2020, the board sent Alexander a letter finding Lencrerot used excessive force.

But Lencrerot was never punished because department records show he resigned amid the investigation.

“Wow! So, you see taking down people is his thing,” Shy Bailey said.

She told Seiden that she had a similar run-in with Lancrerot months earlier.

Security at the Allen Hills Apartments in Southwest Atlanta called for Lancrerot, who was working an off-duty job there.

Bailey said she was trying to pick up her child who was with a friend, but said she didn’t have her ID. The two began arguing.

“He was like ‘Get out this car! I’m going to break your (expletive) arm!’” Bailey said. “He’s like ‘Well, I’m going to detain you. You’re going to get out of this car.’”

Bailey FaceTimed her boyfriend who recorded the confrontation without any audio.

“You can see him tussling with me trying to get me out of the car,” Bailey said.

She said Lencrerot pulled her out of the car, threw her onto the ground, and dragged her down the street in handcuffs.

“I ended up going to jail that night. I had bruises on my knees, my elbows, my fingers, and my hands,” Bailey said.

Bailey said she filed a complaint with Atlanta Police Department, but Lencrerot only received a written reprimand for working an off-duty job without a valid permit.

“It’s like a repeated cycle that’s never going to end if no one holds him accountable for what he’s doing,” Bailey said.

Lencrerot began working as an officer at Clayton State University in July 2022.

Channel 2 Action News obtained his application which mentions the Alexander confrontation, but not the excessive force.

Seiden attempted to get Lencrerot’s side of the story.

“We were just doing our diligence to reach out,” said Seiden during a phone call to Lencrerot.

But he declined to comment, referring Channel 2 Action News to the university.

Lencrerot denied using excessive force in a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

A university spokesperson told Channel 2 Action News that Lancrerot disclosed the civil lawsuit, and the police chief is happy with his job performance.

“When I found that out, it actually scared me a bit, to be honest,” said Levi Ohanenye, who recently earned his master’s degree at Clayton State University.

He never had any interactions with Lancrerot but is concerned about his past.

“I feel like the university was wrong in hiring him. I feel they need to do something to get him off of the campus,” Ohanenye said.

Atlanta police declined our request for comment on this story.

Alexander’s lawsuit is currently working its way through the courts.

IN OTHER NEWS:

A metro man had his car repossessed because it was stolen. Problem was -- he bought it legally He had purchased the Audi A6 seven months earlier and had been making payments on it before a deputy stopped him in his own driveway.

©2023 Cox Media Group