PRAIRIE COUNTY, Ark. — A bus passenger accused of trying to press the vehicle’s brake and gas pedals was arrested after a struggle with Arkansas State Police troopers along Interstate 40, according to an incident report.
NEA Report has obtained video related to the Aug. 19 incident involving Antwuan L. Bannister, of Savannah, Georgia.
Trooper Cody Groves wrote that he heard a radio call about a disturbance aboard a Jefferson Lines bus shortly after 10 a.m. He located the bus on the westbound shoulder near mile marker 203 and saw Bannister walking toward the median.
According to Groves, Bannister crossed a cable barrier and walked onto the eastbound shoulder. Groves spoke with the bus driver and several people aboard the bus and confirmed no one was injured.
The driver told Groves that Bannister approached her while she was driving and asked her to stop. Groves reported being told that Bannister tried to use his foot to press the brake and gas pedals and attempted to fight another passenger.
A second trooper, identified in the report as Trooper Means, arrived and tried to contact Bannister. Groves wrote that Bannister then walked along the approximately 2-foot-wide inside shoulder of westbound I-40 and ignored repeated commands to stop.
The troopers attempted to detain him because of the dangerous location and the reported disturbance aboard the bus, Groves wrote. According to the report, Bannister spun around, pulled his arms away and tried to escape.
Groves reported grabbing Bannister’s right arm while Means brought him to the ground. Means held Bannister down while Groves used an arm-control hold, described in the report as a Kimura, and his legs to secure Bannister’s right arm. Bannister then complied with an instruction to put his left arm behind his back and was handcuffed, the report states.
A fixed-blade knife fell from Bannister’s person during the struggle, according to Groves.
Groves wrote that Bannister continued resisting efforts to place him in a patrol vehicle and tried to walk away. The trooper reported pulling Bannister’s arm, causing him to trip onto the grassy shoulder, and then holding down his legs. Hazen police officers helped place Bannister in the vehicle.
Troopers recovered about 2 grams of suspected marijuana, according to the report. Groves wrote that Bannister had no visible injuries and said he was not injured.
Bannister was taken to the Prairie County Jail. Groves alleged that Bannister repeatedly tried to kick out the patrol vehicle’s rear passenger door windows during the trip and refused to identify himself or cooperate with a photograph at the jail.
The report lists citations for obstructing governmental operations, second-degree criminal mischief, walking on a controlled-access highway, possession of a Schedule VI controlled substance under 4 ounces, carrying a weapon, disorderly conduct and refusal to submit to arrest.
All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
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