Helping While Black?: Black Man Arrested For Helping Drunk Neighbor

The good Samaritan is now facing four charges including resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.

A 23-year-old Silver Spring, Md., man is now in trouble with police after helping an intoxicated neighbor get home safely. Samir Ahmed was arrested on the morning of Nov. 17 outside of his home after cops claim they were called to the residence to help the neighbor who was falling down drunk.

What followed was an accusation from a responding officer that Ahmed, himself, was in fact drunk and high off of marijuana. Ahmed’s family and neighbors caught nearly 20 minutes of the interaction on a cell phone camera. In it, you can hear his neighbors asking why the young man was being detained, and explaining that the original call was placed out of concern for their neighbor who was intoxicated and unresponsive on another neighbor’s lawn.

The clip of Ahmed facedown on a car has since gone viral after being shared on comedian D.L. Hughley’s Instagram. From his own Instagram account, Ahmed detailed the series of events that took place on the morning he was arrested.

After answering all there questions in a respectful manner, one the officers said “I think you’re the intoxicated one,” Ahmed recounts. “I was later arrested as seen in my video but was never told what for till literally 3 hours later.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BqfrcX9hLOh/?utm_source=ig_embed

The good Samaritan, who works as an audio engineer and producer, is currently fighting four charges for resisting arrest, failure to obey a reasonably lawful order, obstructing and hindering, and disorderly conduct, according to Maryland court records and his own admission on Instagram.

In a statement released by the Montgomery County police department and obtained by The Washington Post, officials said, “The Department is reviewing the circumstances surrounding the arrest to determine if any Department policies, procedures or laws were violated during the incident. This assessment will include a review of the responding officers’ body-worn camera footage.”

Ahmed told The Post that three of his neighbors have since filed a complaint against the police department. He is expected to appear in court in January to address his charges.