See What Happened After Viral Video of Syracuse Police With Crying Boy

The video that quickly went viral of Syracuse Police placing an 8-year-old boy into the back of a cruise has sparked outrage. Lengthy body-cam footage shows what happened after the clip seen around the country.

Police officers picked up the 8-year-old who was accused of stealing chips from a local convenience store. "I saw you snatch him off his bike over a bag of chips," Kenneth Jackson told police as they led the crying boy into the car. "If he stole some chips, I'll pay for them."

Press Conference

The Syracuse Police held a press conference, releasing body camera footage showing the boy without handcuffs in the back of the cop car, the ride home to his family, and the conversation officers had with both the father and the boys accused of stealing, again.

Syracuse Police Place Boy in Car

Boy Driven Home

On the ride home the officer can be heard telling the boy "you're going home." When the boy protests, the officer responds with "well stop stealing."

Talking With Father

"What's happening again today is the three of them are riding around the city going into stores and grabbing up stuff and running out with whatever they want," the officer explains to the father, asking if "they know this behavior is not acceptable?"

The video ends with the officer making the boys promise not to steal anything again. "So we're done with this," he asks before offering to stop by and say hi in the future.

Syracuse Police Speak Out

“Everyone would love to have positive interactions with children, but oftentimes we are the only ones around and the only ones responding when these incidents happen,” Syracuse Police Department First Deputy Chief Joseph Cecile said during the press conference.

Syracuse Mayor Makes Statement

Syracuse Mayor, Ben Walsh released a statement after seeing the video and asking for an investigation into the body cam footage.
“What occurred demonstrates the continuing need for the City to provide support to our children and families and to invest in alternative response options to assist our officers.”

Syracuse NAACP Respond

Syracuse NAACP responded with "opposition of this kind of interaction with children."

We have been calling for a more thoughtful approach to community policing for many years in Syracuse. This incident further supports the need for cultural competency training and accountability within our police department. While we recognize that the challenges police encounter are difficult, we also know that better outcomes can and must be achieved.

No charged were filed against the boy.