Priest witnesses arrest, files report

from KXL.com

Reverand Randall Stuart writes "the incident smacked of over-the-top arrest and, sorry to say, undue force."

Some witnesses to a police take down said they were surprised by the officers' brutality.

As the Reverand Randall Stuart and an out-of-town guest strolled through the Pearl District Sunday afternoon, they saw three Portland officers tackle 42-year-old James Chasse. In a complaint filed with the city's Independent Police Review Division, Stuart writes "the incident smacked of over-the-top arrest and, sorry to say, undue force."

After apparently being knocked out, Chasse reportedly awoke and begged the paramedics not to leave the scene. He was handcuffed, had his legs tied and was carried "like a deer" to a patrol car, according to Stuart.

After being booked at the jail, police were called back to take him to the hospital, but Chasse died in route in the back of a patrol car.

His death is still under investigation.