Dodgers Fan Beat Up By Security Guard: Video From Opening Day

by Jon Azpiri | April 15, 2010 at 02:33 pm

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A Video of a LA Dodgers Fans Being Manhandled By Security Has Gone Viral. Did Dodgers Stadium Security Go Too Far?

A video featuring a baseball fan getting roughed up by Los Angeles Dodgers security is making the rounds on YouTube.

What Happened in the Dodger Fans Security Video?

The video that's been posted to YouTube doesn't provide a whole lot of context as to why the fan clashed with security in the first place.

What it does show is a security guard shoving the fan in the chest several times. The fan is eventually pushed through a gate. Security follows him out of the gate and kicks the Dodgers fan in the chest.

The fan is the restrained by more than a half-dozen security gaurds and is held down on the ground.

LA Dodgers officials say they are investigating the incident.

Capt. Bill Murphy said that at first glance, the video seems to justify the use of force by Dodger Stadium security guards:

He said the man seemed to push the security officer with his hands before he was pushed by a security guard. Murphy said, immediately before the kick by the security guard, the fan seemed to put up his hands in a "fighting motion.”

That same day, more than 100 people were arrested at Dodger Stadium, mostly for heavy drinking. Tailgate parties on Opening Day have long been a tradition at Chavez Ravine, but police decided to clamp down this year after a particular rough 2009 Opening Day that saw several fights and the stabbing of a fan in the parking lot.

Many fans thought that security on Opening Day had gone overboard.

"They yelled at me when I pulled out a chair," said Denise Salazar, 29, as she stood next to Romero.

"I thought L.A. was in a budget deficit. But they have enough L.A. police to come here and harass us?" Romero said. "We're just trying to celebrate opening day.

Here is the Dodger Stadium Security Guard Video