Prominent Little Rock activist riled after encounter with policemen; officers mistook cellphone for gun

Benny Johnson, founder and president of Arkansas Stop the Violence, is shown in this photo.
Benny Johnson, founder and president of Arkansas Stop the Violence, is shown in this photo.

A confrontation between Little Rock police and a prominent anti-violence activist has created a rift between the department and one of its longtime allies in the city's fight against crime.

Benny Johnson, founder and president of Arkansas Stop the Violence, has accused officers of illegally entering his apartment with guns drawn after he called 911 and reported gunfire in the area Monday night. Johnson said that for decades he and police have worked toward a common goal of peace on the streets, but the encounter at his home has left him "shook up" and has rattled his trust in the department.

"I've never been this upset in my life," Johnson said Wednesday. "For someone to be anti-violent and fight for justice and peace, and then I end up violated -- man, I am mad."

The damaged relationship comes at a time when the Police Department, by its own account, needs the support of activists like Johnson. This year, the department has rallied activists, elected officials and other community leaders to help battle an increase in violent crime in the city.

The police encounter with Johnson occurred shortly after 10:30 p.m. Monday, after he called 911 to report gunfire outside his residence at Pine Garden Apartments. Officers searched the complex at 6414 Baseline Road and found no one injured, according to a police report. They did not find a shooter.

Officers were searching the complex a second time when they saw a man, identified as Johnson, looking out his apartment window.

"Officers just barely could make out something black in the man's hand," the report says. "From outside the apartment, the way he was holding his hand, it looked as if the man was holding a gun to his head."

Officers, fearing that the man was suicidal, broke through a door to get into the building, police said. They went upstairs to Johnson's apartment, knocked on the door and asked Johnson to let them inside.

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Johnson opened the door, and the officers saw that he was holding a cellphone, not a gun. He'd been speaking to his landlord on the phone.

Johnson "stepped back out of the way" when officers asked to search his apartment, according to the report. He reportedly became upset after the officers entered.

Johnson, who has lived at the apartment for about two years, told the officers that they had violated his civil rights and he told them to leave, the report said.

Johnson, 55, said in an interview Wednesday that the officers had their guns drawn and made him fear that he would become a "statistic," referring to black men killed by police.

He said he explained to the officers that he was the person who had called 911, which led an officer to question why he didn't go outside to meet them.

Johnson said it was ridiculous for police to think he'd go outside when he had just reported gunfire and officers were searching the area with their pistols drawn.

"They just screwed up and tried to cover themselves," he said.

Johnson said he had spoken to an attorney about the encounter. He said he had not filed a complaint with the Police Department because he does not believe that the department will investigate it fairly.

Police Chief Kenton Buckner said Wednesday that the encounter was "unfortunate," but he had no reason to believe that the officers had violated any laws or department policies.

Buckner said Johnson, whom he described as a "key member of our city," should file a complaint if he believes otherwise.

"What message is he sending to the community [if he doesn't file a complaint]? If he feels the police have done something inappropriate, the appropriate thing to do is to report it so that administrators can investigate," Buckner said.

The run-in with Johnson comes as the Police Department continues its efforts to build trust in the community. Since Buckner was sworn in as chief in June 2014, the department has revamped its public communications office, hired a neighborhood watch coordinator, and held a series of public forums online and across the city.

Those initiatives began as police departments across the country came under public scrutiny amid racial tension over officers' use of deadly force in encounters with black men.

This year, Little Rock police heightened efforts to engage the community as homicides and shootings climbed in the city. Buckner repeatedly has stated that police alone can't stop the violence.

Buckner said Wednesday that he didn't think the tension with Johnson would harm the Police Department's community outreach efforts.

In fact, Johnson has been critical of the Police Department in the past. Earlier this year, he questioned the department's efforts to fight violent crime. In 2014, Johnson alleged that officers responded faster to calls in white neighborhoods than in black neighborhoods.

Johnson has frequently spoken in support of the department, as well. He has praised its OK Program, a mentoring program for black youths that's led by Little Rock police Sgt. Willie Davis. Last year, Johnson called the Police Department's homicide unit the best in the nation.

Johnson was a Little Rock School District security supervisor when he founded Arkansas Stop the Violence in 1991. Gang intervention was a major focus of the group.

It also provided an after-school program for kids from different neighborhoods to play basketball, lift weights and study.

Over the years, Johnson has organized countless vigils, marches and other events in memory of people slain in Little Rock.

He routinely issues public pleas for information in unsolved homicide cases and works to comfort the families of the dead.

City leaders have recognized Johnson for his activism. Little Rock declared July 8, 2012, as Benny Johnson Day.

"I know we have some good officers, but when you make a mistake you need to own up to it," Johnson said Wednesday. "I did nothing to deserve that kind of treatment. Nothing. Absolutely nothing."

Metro on 10/05/2017

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