Jacksonville mother Erika McGriff speaks out after viral arrest at a charter school, claiming excessive force by police
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville mother, whose arrest outside a Northside charter school went viral, has spoken publicly for the first time alongside two women who were also arrested as bystanders under Florida’s new “HALO” law.
Civil rights lawyers Ben Crump and Harry Daniels held a press conference on Tuesday, urging the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to dismiss all charges and re-examine what they called “excessive force” used by the officers involved.
During the emotional press conference, family members of Erika McGriff spoke about the moment she was taken to the ground by police.
“You can’t imagine the impact on a mother seeing her child thrown to the ground and beaten,” a member of the McGriff family expressed.
McGriff, 39, was arrested last week while picking up her 9-year-old daughter outside IDEA Charter School on Jacksonville’s Northside.
“I was just trying to pick up my daughter from school. That was my only intention,” McGriff stated. “What happened was unnecessary and unjust.”
Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters defends officers’ actions, saying that the officer involved followed policy and that McGriff resisted.
Sheriff T.K Waters commented, “It’s unbelievable to challenge a police officer… that could lead to a citation and being jailed for a third-degree felony.”
McGriff faces three felony charges, including battery on a law enforcement officer.
Two bystanders, Jasmine Jefferson and Anito Gibson, were also arrested under HALO law.
Jefferson recounted, “The incident occurred on a Tuesday, and by Friday afternoon, I was arrested on the spot when internal affairs reached out for a statement.”
The women are accused of violating Florida’s HALO law, which creates a 25-foot buffer zone around first responders. Civil rights attorneys say the law is unconstitutional and silences people trying to record or speak out.
“We want good policing. We don’t want you to protect and serve everybody else and assault us. We just want equal justice under the law.”
McGriff’s attorneys say her arrest reflects a pattern of excessive force over minor traffic violations in Jacksonville.
JSO has not announced any new statements since the press conference.
