A Royse City family is demanding accountability after a newly released video showed a police officer forcefully detaining a mother, her daughter, and others outside a neighborhood pool.
The family filed a formal complaint with the Royse City Police Department, which confirmed it has opened an internal use-of-force investigation. The department also said the officer involved has been placed on administrative leave.
The incident began after police responded to a reported disturbance at the neighborhood pool.
According to the family, the confrontation stemmed from a misunderstanding after neighbors questioned whether they lived in the community and were allowed to use the pool.
Video from the scene shows Janiaca Wheeler being dragged by her hair by a Royse City police officer before she is pinned to the ground. Wheeler said the officer ripped out several of her dreadlocks during the encounter.
The video also shows Wheeler’s daughter, Amiayah, being handcuffed and pinned to the ground while Wheeler’s younger children cried and watched nearby.
The footage further appeared to show an officer pushing two other young women away by placing a hand on their faces as they followed police toward a patrol vehicle.
Speaking publicly after filing the complaint, Wheeler described her fear during the encounter.
“I thought it was going to turn into something. So, I really just wanted him off of her, and whatever he needed to do that he was going to do to her, do it to me. Versus, my baby,” Wheeler said.
Amiayah said she had never experienced anything like the encounter before.
“I have never been in any trouble with the police. So I called my mom,” Amiayah said.
Next Generation Action Network joined the family at the police department and criticized the officer’s actions.
“It was almost as if the police officer was disrespected by the fact that this mother wanted to know, why is this police officer aggressively hound handling her daughters in her friends and all of the children?” Dominique Alexander with the Next Generation Action Network asked.
The group also compared the incident to the 2015 police response at a McKinney pool party involving then-15-year-old Dajerria Becton.
“There’s no training in America that trains an officer on doing that,” Alexander said.
Police said they dropped the charges against Wheeler and her daughter the day after the incident.
In a statement, the Royse City Police Department said it had reviewed the video and launched an internal use-of-force investigation.
“The officer, who is the subject of the internal investigation, has been placed on administrative leave,” the department said.
The department also said it plans to release its findings and any disciplinary action once the investigation is complete.
“Once the internal investigation is completed, the police department will release its findings and will disclose any and all actions taken,” the statement said, adding the department takes “these types of matters very seriously.”
Next Generation Action Network said it plans to attend next week’s Royse City Council meeting alongside the Wheeler family to continue pressing city leaders for accountability.
“We want to make sure that this officer is terminated,” Alexander said.
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC DFW. AI tools helped convert the story into a digital article, and an NBC DFW journalist edited it again before publication.