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Investigation underway after man records encounter with Washington County deputy

A Washington County man said a police officer stopped his patrol car and approached him while he was walking down the road.

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Man films encounter with Washington County deputy
By
Amber Lake
, WITN
WASHINGTON COUNTY, N.C. — A Washington County man said a deputy stopped his patrol car and approached him while he was walking down the road.
Castaneda said his back is fractured in six places and his doctor said it's good for him to go on walks for exercise. During his walk, Castaneda said that a Washington County deputy, who WITN identified as Dominic Franks, approached him in a law enforcement vehicle. Video shows Franks chasing Castaneda, and Castaneda said Franks threw him to the ground.

WITN reports Castaneda was charged with assault on a government official, damage to property, fleeing arrest and standing on the wrong side of the highway.

Franks previously worked at the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office. Sheriff Ernie Coleman said Franks was fired from that office for “poor performance, bizarre and unstable behavior, and fabricated allegations.”

Franks filed a federal lawsuit against his supervisor at the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office. Later, he was hired by the Washington County Sheriff's Office.

Castaneda said that he told Franks he had an injured back, and Franks "still decided to jump on me and throw me to the ground."

As a result, Washington County Johnny Barnes launched an internal investigation. In the meantime, Franks will work until the investigation is over.

Barnes told WITN his deputies are trained to take control of the situation and be considerate of all circumstances.

When asked about the Facebook live video, Barnes said that "these short video clips don't show everything that happened because they are short and just from one angle."

Castaneda's mother, Kathy Castaneda, said she heard a commotion as soon as Jay left their home.

"I don’t feel safe anymore," his mother said. "I mean if a cop can do that, who is here to protect and serve. I couldn’t believe it was happening. He had just left the yard not even two minutes ago.”

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