‘Let Me Walk! Don’t Touch Me!’: Philly Cop Caught on Video Shoving and Tasering Black Man for Crossing the Street — Then Charging Him with Assault
Posted byBy Carlos Miller | Published on: June 24, 2025 CommentsComments (0)A white Philadelphia cop walking in the middle of the street was caught on video escalating an interaction with a Black man by shoving and tasering him for standing in the crosswalk of the street, ordering him to get off the street.
However, the video shows the man appeared to be stepping toward the sidewalk when the cop began placing his hands on the Black man, shoving him.
“Don’t touch me!” the Black man repeatedly told the cop, facing off with him with his arms by his side. “Let me walk! Don’t touch me!”
The cop, who has been identified as Christopher O’Donnell, continued shoving the Black man, pulling out his Taser and firing it at him, even after the Black man was already on the sidewalk, forcing the Black man to walk onto the other street.
The cop continued shoving him in the middle of traffic in complete disregard for the safety of the Black man and himself.
The Black man has his arms raised to show he was not fighting back as several other cops joined the first cop to arrest him while multiple witnesses exclaimed, “He didn’t do nothing.”
“He just tased him for nothing,” said the man recording the video.
The Black man who has only been identified as “Daron” as of this writing was charged with assault on a police officer, according to his girlfriend, who posted the video on Instagram.
However, the video clearly shows it was the cop assaulting Daron.
“This is unacceptable and needs to be investigated!” wrote one commenter with the username, @_moreofmi, where she tagged the mayor, district attorney and the Philadelphia Police Department.
“This police officer has too much aggression built up to protect us.”
Watch the video below.
‘This Wasn’t Policing – This Was Harassment
The video was posted Friday to Instagram by a Black woman with the username @_callme_charlie, who is Daron’s girlfriend, explaining that the incident took place on Tuesday, June 17, resulting in Daron spending the night in jail before he was released the following day.Atlanta Black Star reached out to her for an interview to obtain more details, but she has not yet responded.
However, she stated the following in the caption to the video:
@phillypolice — you need to hold Officer Christopher O’Donnell accountable. This man showed ZERO self-control, abused his power, and escalated a situation that never needed force.
A Black man who wasn’t under investigation, posed no threat, and knew his rights — was tased, physically antagonized, and falsely accused of assault by an officer clearly on a power trip.
You’re hiring suburban cops and dropping them into communities they don’t understand — and they respond with fear, force, and disrespect.
Let’s be real: wearing a badge doesn’t demand respect — your actions do. This officer used aggression, not de-escalation. This wasn’t policing — this was harassment.
Every Black man in Philly aren’t threats and doesn’t deserve to be treated like a criminal. Their fathers, sons, employees — who know their rights. Violating them can’t keep happening.
We need accountability. We need transparency. We need change.
City Officials Respond
One of the people commenting on the video was Kareem E. Thomas, chairman of the Philadelphia Commission of Human Relations, a city agency tasked to “enforce an important set of laws that prevent discrimination and promote equality,” according to the agency’s website.I’m the Chair of the PHL Commission on Human Relations and I’ve tagged several Members of City Council. I will also ask the Commission to look into this and connect with the community. Can you DM me where this occurred and around what time?
Another commenter was Philadelphia City Councilman Kenyatta Johnson, who commented by saying, “Yeah this ain’t cool. I’m on it!”
However, even though the Philadelphia Police Department has been tagged several times, they still have not addressed the incident on their social media pages.
Meanwhile, outrage continues to grow on the internet as the video is shared on several different platforms.
“The fact that he still tased him after he already done pushed him on the sidewalk and out of the street is Insane!!!” said commenter @nay_msoctober.
“Once he was in the sidewalk the order was complete. So I’m lost on why he was tased,” said commenter @streetphoto215.
We will update this article as we receive new information.