Needham police accused of racial profiling and handcuffing Black man on his way to work
Marvin Henry says he stopped to purchase cough drops and iced tea from a CVS — and ended up in handcuffs.
Marvin Henry says he was on his usual commute to work in Needham this past January when he stopped to grab lunch, some cough drops, and an iced tea.
It was a routine that Henry had done many times before. But when he returned to the family minivan, the Black father of four says he was met by four Needham police officers — who grabbed him, handcuffed him, and detained him for roughy a half-hour on unfounded suspicions of shoplifting.
Now, Henry is seeking an apology — and an investigation into the incident of alleged racial profiling and unlawful search and seizure.
In the wake of the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, Henry came forward with the account in a letter sent Monday afternoon by Lawyers for Civil Rights to Needham Police Chief John Schlittler, who Henry says was one of the four officers who accosted him.
The Boston-based legal services group says the incident left Henry “deeply shaken.”
“He knows that just one sudden movement or one misinterpreted word could have meant his death: another George Floyd killed by police,” Lawyers for Civil rights said in a statement. “Racial profiling and police brutality against Black men and women are not only problems in Minneapolis or New York. It happens right here, in our own backyard.”
Needham officials say the town is thoroughly reviewing the allegations — but dispute Henry’s account of Schlittler being present.
“While we are still reviewing the many facts alleged in this case, one thing the Town has determined is that the Police Chief was not on the scene during this incident,” Cyndi Roy Gonzalez, the town’s public information officer, told Boston.com in a statement Tuesday. “Given the magnitude of what is alleged to have occurred, it is critical that the record be corrected to reflect that fact. The Town takes seriously all allegations contained in the letter.”
According to the letter, on Jan. 25, Henry was on his way to work his afternoon shift at Elements Massage in Needham, where he has worked as a massage therapist for nearly three years. Henry — who lives in another town that was not disclosed for his family’s privacy — also drives for Lyft in Needham.
He parked his car in front of the Starbucks on Highland Avenue and went into Town House of Pizza next door to order lunch. While he waited, Henry said he crossed the street to CVS to grab cough drops and an iced tea. As a frequent customer, Henry had set up his phone to automatically receive his receipt by email.
After picking up his lunch, he got back to his Honda Odyssey when he was allegedly confronted by the four officers.
“Hey you, come here!” one officer said, according to the letter Monday.
Henry says he was immediately grabbed by one of the officers and roughly shoved up against the minivan. Despite him not resisting, the officers allegedly forced Henry’s hands behind his back and handcuffed him; they also searched him, even though he gave no indication of having any weapons in the first place, according to the letter.
Henry said he repeatedly asked the officers why he was being detained, as well as to at least loosen the “extremely painful” metal handcuffs on his wrists. According to the letter, they refused. They also allegedly refused to allow him to call work to notify his employer about why he would be late, even though his office was less than 300 feet away.
“Instead, the Needham Police kept a wrongfully accused Black man standing on a public sidewalk only a short distance from his place of employment in full view with his hands cuffed behind his back,” the letter Monday said, noting that Henry was standing within view of full-length windows at the Starbucks and could see at least one patron staring at him from inside.
“One man actually shielded a young child’s eyes, to block Mr. Henry from his view, an act that Mr. Henry found humiliating,” the letter added.
Marvin Henry with his wife and children.
It was only after 30 minutes that Henry says a “Sergeant Cray” arrived at the scene and said he was suspected of shoplifting, after a CVS clerk had identified him from camera footage. Henry says he wasn’t told what he allegedly stole, nor was he shown the camera footage.
“Mr. Henry explained that he had made a lawful purchase and requested that the officers release his hands so that he could use his cell phone to show them his store receipt to prove it,” the letter said. “Instead, the officers asked him to open the door to his minivan. Believing that he had no other choice, Mr. Henry complied with the officer’s directive, as he was too intimidated to refuse. The officers searched the vehicle and its contents, including his work bag and the CVS bag.”
The letter said that “only after searching the vehicle did the officers undo the handcuffs and allow Mr. Henry to show them the CVS receipt on his phone.”
Shortly after he showed them the receipt, Henry says he was released — but was offered no further explanation or apology for being detained for 30 minutes.
Additionally, Henry says he was forced to cancel his full schedule of clients that Saturday afternoon due to the emotional distress and physical injuries caused by the incident; according to the letter, the handcuffs left deep indentations on his wrists and caused pain in his hands for the next several days.
“Additionally, the experience was humiliating as well as painful,” the letter said, adding that the “the false allegations” along with the “highly visible nature of the incident along a main town street” negatively affected Henry’s reputation in the community.
Henry says he asked for the officers’ names and badge numbers, but was ignored by several. According to the letter, he only received the information from an “Officer Fitzpatrick,” Cray, and Schlittler, who allegedly provided both his name and badge number (even though Needham officials contend that the police chief was not present).
Henry also said he asked to see the camera footage, but was told by Cray that he would have to visit the Needham Police Station to request a copy of the video. According to the letter, Henry went to the station later that same day, but was unable to get any additional information about the incident.
He later filed a public records request for the CVS surveillance that the police allegedly said was used to identify him as the shoplifter. The request was denied on Feb. 10, according to the letter Monday.
Henry’s lawyers say the police department actions violated his right against unreasonable search and seizure, as well as raise concerns about racial profiling and stereotyping. In their letter Monday, the group asked the department to apologize to Henry and his employer, along with an investigation into the incident and compensation for the emotional and physical harm he suffered.
“Black people should not have to live in fear that every police encounter could end in bodily injury or death,” the letter said. “Nor should they be subject to pretextual stops pursuant to racial profiling practices. For far too long, the Black community has faced humiliation, injury, or even death when interacting with police because of the color of their skin.”
They also requested that Needham police take steps to ensure similar incident do not occur, including implicit bias and deescalation training.
The account comes just weeks after Northeastern University’s former athletic director, who is Black, spoke out about an incident in May where Newton police drew their guns on him and his wife after they misidentified him as a murder suspect.
With regards to Henry’s account, Gonzalez, the Needham town spokeswoman, cautioned against rushing to any conclusions before officials could garner more information about the incident.
“Given current tensions and heightened awareness around issues of race and discrimination and policing, it is particularly imperative that we fully understand the facts before coming to any conclusions,” she said Tuesday. “The Town will conduct a thorough investigation into this matter and asks that the community withhold judgement until that investigation is complete.”
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