The Duncan, Oklahoma, monthly city council meeting was graced by the presence of first amendment auditor and activist Jose “Chille” DeCastro on Wednesday, who disrespected the council by loudly talking through the meeting before urging a crack down on police corruption during his allotted speaking time.
DeCastro was in Duncan for another day, gathering information on “corrupt” police tactics as he said he was still investigating the case of Heather Chandler, a woman who he says was the subject of a targeted harassment campaign by a Duncan police officer named Darius McReynolds.
The diminutive YouTuber showed a portion of a bodycam video where McReynolds pulled over Chandler, who was riding a bicycle apparently late at night in an area DeCastro described as “the middle of nowhere.”
Reynolds said the reason for the stop was that he could not see Chandler’s light at the front of her bicycle. Once he confirmed it was working, he warned Chandler that she was required to have a bell on the front of her bicycle or else she could be subject to further stops.
Chandler was not given a citation in the incident and despite DeCastro’s claims, the bodycam video appeared to showcase a random, if uneventful traffic stop.
DeCastro repeated his claim that McReynolds was stalking Chandler throughout the video. He told both Duncan Police Chief Brian Attaway and police Major David Woods that McReynolds, despite driving a police vehicle with lights on in the dark, would not have been able to see Chandler without front light.
Neither man seemed worried about the stop despite DeCastro’s claim that the stop was illegal as he said that McReynolds lacked probable cause to pull Chandler over.
DeCastro had also apparently been at the home of a relative of McReynolds earlier in the week, as police were called to respond to remove him from the property. The YouTuber insisted on speaking with officer McReynolds at the home and complied with police without incident when asked to leave.
While at the Duncan Police Department, which shares a building with the Duncan town hall where the city council meeting was set for later in the afternoon, DeCastro introduced a man named Robrt Campbell, a full disabled veteran who lived in the area.
Campbell said he was involved in an incident earlier in the year where he was feeling depressed and suicidal and went to police for help as he said there was no other Veteran’s outreach programs in the area.
An incident occurred as Campbell blacked out and at one point was taken down to the ground while still in handcuffs. DeCastro played a small snippet of the events from that incident, telling viewers that Campbell was WWE style “choke slammed” by police.
Again, when speaking with police Chief Attaway and Major Woods, both men pledged to look into the bodycam footage but would not commit to immediate disciplinary action against the officers involved in the alleged “choke slamming.”
DeCastro appeared more amped up and agitated as the livestream progressed leading to the city council meeting. At one point, DeCastro lost Campbell, and approached both Duncan Mayor Robert Armstron and an unidentified city council member separately to attempt to show them the video of Campbell’s interaction with police.
Once the city council meeting started, DeCastro continued a loud whispering commentary to his livestream viewers, paying no attention to the meeting until it was time for public feedback.
In his allotted time, DeCastro introduced himself as a civil rights activist and constitutional law scholar. He said he was in Duncan to investigate Officer McReynolds for “stalking” Heather Chandler and would be able to show the council proof of McReynolds’ inappropriate behavior.
He also briefly touched on the incident with Campbell, again, offering to show city council members the video of the incident. DeCastro pledged that he would be in Campbell for the foreseeable future as hew as exposing “more and more” corruption within the police force.
When it was Campbell’s time to speak, Campbell did not decry the incident with police. Instead, he complained about a lack of resources for veterans in the area and proposed that the city council grant him money to wrap his car in a design that advertised veteran’s mental health awareness.
He also mentioned that he wanted to open a YouTube channel with the help of the city council dedicated to the same subject. He asked for the city council’s help in promoting the YouTube channel as he finished his remarks.
After Campbell’s remarks, DeCastro approached Major Woods and badgered the officer with loudly whispered questions. While he was being “shushed” by Woods, a member of the American Legion reminded veterans in the area that they did weekly outreach programs for veterans and that they provided mental health services for veterans in the area.
When DeCastro said that he and Major Woods were developing a great friendship, Woods replied with, “No, we are not.”
DeCastro’s stream ended with the YouTuber meeting back up with Campbell and announcing that Campbell may be suing the city based on the supposed “choke slamming.”
