Video Emerges of Orlando Cop Attacking Homeless, Black Man

Officer James Wilson is seen on top of Terre Johnson during the bloody fight, with Johnson pinned to the ground as Wilson swings at him, the Daily Mail reported on Sunday.

Witnesses claim that Wilson started the fight and it was completely unprovoked, while Wilson and the police department are saying that Johnson swung first.

"Him and Terre are standing on the edge of the road, face-to-face, talking and arguing, and all of a sudden, he just grabs Terre and slammed him into the ground," one of the witnesses told News 6.

Another witness, Andrew Ensminger, told WESH; "Terre asked him, "Get out of my face, please," and [the officer] is like, "Whoa! What are you going to do about it? What are you doing to do about it?" all up in his face.

"Then he pulled out the Taser and pointed it at him like he was going to taze him and put it back in. That's when [Wilson] grabbed [Johnson] and slammed him to the ground and started hitting him."

Austin Mills, another witness, said; "The officer pulled out the Taser to Taser the man and [Johnson] said, "Go ahead, I want you to taze me."

"And when he grabbed the man, they fell to the ground. And when they fell to the ground, the officer got on top of the man, so Terre hit the officer. Then the officer grabbed him by the hair and started hitting him like this."

Orlando police spokeswoman Sgt. Wanda Ford disputes these eyewitness accounts however, and says that Wilson was wearing a body camera which will clear him of any wrongdoing.

"All you are seeing is one small piece of an incident, and that is it," said Sgt. Ford.

"This is one of those instances, where the suspect was aggressive. He's known to be aggressive. He's been arrested before for battery and for resisting against an officer."

Johnson, 44, was arrested for that offense just one year ago, and in June was arrested after punching a man outside a public library.

Sgt. Ford also said that after the body camera has been reviewed and the investigation is complete, the footage will be released to the public.
She also shared photos of the injuries Wilson suffered after the attack.

Jason Hernandez, a Coalition for the Homeless resident, signed a witness statement that read; "I heard [Johnson] say that he loved to beat up cops and has a record. And I seen him hit the cop first and continue to hit the cop."

Johnson meanwhile is being held in jail for the fight on $10,300 bond.