Black Teen Braylen Kizzee Mistaken As ‘Fugitive’ In Wrongful Arrest

Braylen Kizzee, a 19-year-old college student from Fort Bend County, Texas, is still shaken and fearful following his wrongful traffic stop arrest on Dec. 3.

In a recent interview with ABC 13, Kizzee, who is Black, recounted being forced to crawl on his hands and knees at gunpoint, only for four officers to later realize he wasn’t the suspect they were searching for. The officers had been looking for a suspect linked to an out-of-state fugitive case.

According to the outlet, Kizzee was driving back to his college on the morning of Dec. 3 when he was cut off by an unmarked truck while entering the Fort Bend Toll road. One of the officers, who the teen claimed did not identify themselves as law enforcement at the time, rolled down his window and began yelling commands. 

“I just really thought somebody was just trying to jack my car,” Kizzee said.

One of the officers allegedly shouted, “’Show me your hands before I blow your head off’” and made him “crawl to the passenger side” on his hands in knees, demanding that he get in front of the truck.  The officers had their guns pointed at Kizzee the entire time until they finally realized he wasn’t the suspect they were looking for.

Kizzee sustained minor scratches and bruises to his knees. The impact from the officers’ truck also caused creasing and denting to his side door. Byron Kizzee, the teen’s father, who is a peace officer in the Texas area, said he is relieved that his son is still alive following the troubling incident.

“If he made one wrong move, I probably would be burying my son,” Byron told ABC 13 of the fugitive mishap. “I’m not okay with that. I want everybody held accountable.”

The outlet noted that three of the four officers involved in Braylen Kizzee’s arrest were from the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Task Force, a unit managed by the U.S. Marshals Service. A spokesperson for the agency declined to comment on the incident.

“Nothing they did was procedure,” Bryon added. “You never identified yourself. You’re in unmarked cars. The unit behind him, that was marked, never turned on the lights. It’s terrifying.”

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump also highlighted Kizzee’s case, urging for increased attention and visibility.

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