Jacksonville Woman Breaks Silence After Bodycam Video of Her Arrest Goes Public

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Erika McGriff will stand alongside nationally known civil rights attorney Ben Crump at a press conference in Jacksonville Tuesday morning, marking the first time she’ll speak out publicly since her violent arrest last week.

McGriff, 39, will share her perspective after the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office released bodycam footage of her arrest on Friday, which shows Officer Randy Holton yanking her hair and punching her during a takedown to the ground. Meanwhile, Crump and his legal team will share what they have uncovered so far in their investigation.

McGriff faces several charges, including battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer with violence and operating a motor vehicle while having a revoked driver’s license, all third-degree felonies. The charges stem from a Tuesday, Oct. 7 incident outside the IDEA charter school located at 1845 Bassett Rd. in Jacksonville.

During a news conference on Friday, Sheriff T.K. Waters stated that McGriff has a history of traffic offenses, calling her a “habitual traffic offender.” He said that while driving with a revoked license, she illegally parked her running vehicle at an intersection near the school and left it unattended.

Crump is aiming to hold JSO accountable for what he describes as an excessive use of force against McGriff, who, according to him, was unarmed and posed no deadly threat.

In a statement, Crump called the footage “disturbing,” saying it is “another example of unnecessary and excessive force used against a Black woman during what should have been a routine encounter.”

Waters stated that Holton initially approached McGriff to have a conversation, but claimed she was non-compliant.

“She violently resisted Officer Holton and eventually punched him repeatedly and bit him with such force that she left a bite impression on his forearm,” Waters said.

Crump’s investigation is also focusing on footage where McGriff is heard saying “I can’t breathe” and “help” more than 20 times while on the ground.

“We send it to our use-of-force experts to review everything he (Holton) did during the process, and he followed the rules,” Waters said. “He followed the law.”

Jail records show McGriff was released from the Duval County Jail Oct. 9, two days after her arrest, and also show she is set to make her first court appearance Oct. 29.

First Coast News will livestream McGriff’s press conference with Crump from Sanctuary Mt. Calvary Church at 11:15 a.m. Click back on this story to watch it.