✍🏾: @lexisryann
An investigation has been launched into the viral arrest of Charleene Gibson, a Black woman, in Westminster, CO.
Westminster Police Department has initiated an internal affairs investigation after officers responded to a fight involving three Black women and a white man.
On Saturday, January 21, Westminster Police were called to Party City in the 9400 block of Sheridan Boulevard. Several people, including three women in their 20s and a 74-year-old man, had been in a physical altercation.
According to police, the situation began when the man approached the women about their car blocking the handicapped ramp that led to the store entrance. The man’s wife uses a walker and was inside shopping.
He reportedly said to the women, “thanks for blocking the handicap zone,” and attempted to take pictures of Charleene Gibson’s license plate.
“The Party City employee said it was ok to park there for a few minutes while we load balloons in the car. I stayed in the car and turned my hazards on,” said Gibson, who was picking up supplies for her birthday party.
When Gibson exited the car to prevent the man from taking photos, she says the man grabbed her jacket, ripped it and punched her. She then punched him back.
The man told police she knocked the camera away and punched him in the face.
One witness says the women cornered the man and assaulted him. Others say Gibson was punched in the face by the man and the other two women came to assist.
“When we were tussling and moving around, my sister Amber was trying to get him off me,” said Gibson. “He was antagonizing us, saying stuff like ‘bring it on.’”
Officers ticketed the man and charged him with 3rd-degree assault, a misdemeanor.
The other two women were charged with disorderly conduct, a misdemeanor. Gibson was charged with 3rd-degree assault of an at-risk adult, a felony, and taken to jail.
After the Adams County District Attorney’s Office reviewed police reports, witness statements, and evidence, Gibson’s felony charge of 3rd-degree assault of an at-risk adult was dismissed. #BWLM💕
