Texas Police Chief Apologizes After Officers Lead Man Around Block With a Rope

People are wondering why the man was paraded around the block instead of simply waiting for backup to arrive.

This past Saturday over in Galveston, locals are questioning the actions of two mounted police officers. 43-year-old Donald Neely was accused of trespassing on private property and placed in handcuffs. The officers then attached a rope to the handcuffs and led Neely around the block to a mounted patrol staging area.

Many are wondering why the officers did this? They could have just placed him in handcuffs and waited for a patrol car to arrive to put him in the back of it. Police Chief Vernon Hale has released a statement on the situation saying this is a common tactic used in crowded situations to ensure the suspect doesn't get away. For instance, if a patrol car was unable to get to the suspect. This was not one of those cases.

He said he believes his officers "showed poor judgment in this instance and could have waited for a transport unit at the location of arrest." He said his department has "immediately changed the policy" to prevent the use of the technique. Neely has since bonded out since this incident took place over the weekend.