RantCrush Top 5: March 21, 2017

Hip hop star Wyclef Jean said he was handcuffed by police in L.A. early this morning, after officers mistook him for a robber. He tweeted a video of the incident, writing “LAPD another case of mistaken identity.” “Y’all see the police have handcuffs on me. They just took off my Haitian bandanna,” Jean said in the video. Apparently, the alleged robber was a black man wearing a red bandana who had threatened a victim at gunpoint. Jean was briefly handcuffed and detained by deputies from the County Sheriff’s Department at a gas station nearby, as his car matched the description of the real robber’s.

LAPD another case of mistaken identity. Black man with red bandana robbed a gas station as I was in the studio working but im in handcuffs? pic.twitter.com/vjRfJUkooA

— Wyclef Jean (@wyclef) March 21, 2017

The correct suspect was later caught and what he stole was returned. But many people were upset that law enforcement officials move so quickly to detain black men, guilty or not.

Wyclef Jean is rich & Black. Guess where he was this morning because he loosely fit the description? In handcuffs. Because Black

— Mikki Kendall (@Karnythia) March 21, 2017

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.