‘I’m Not Even Driving’: A Passenger Refused to Get Out Over a Seatbelt Stop — Officers Dragged Him Out Anyway and X Can’t Stop Arguing About It

A video posted to X by @GR_businessman showing a man's encounter with police over a seatbelt violation has gone viral. Users began debating police tactics and the circumstances surrounding the arrest of this passenger, who repeatedly insisted he was “not even driving.”

The footage appears to show several police officers attempting to remove a man from a vehicle while another person in the car urges him to cooperate. “Bro, okay, just let him take you,” the man behind the camera, identified in the video as the driver, can be heard saying in the video.

The man being detained repeatedly asks officers why he is under arrest and says, “For what, though? I'm not even driving.”

As one officer attempts to remove the man from the vehicle, another officer strikes his leg multiple times. During this, the passenger also says, “My finger's broken.” The video then shows the man on the ground in a grassy area as officers continue the arrest.

On X, the clip made users debate both the officers' actions and the potential legal consequences for the suspect if an officer was injured during the encounter. “Congratulations to that [passenger], he just picked up a big boy felony for causing that officer such an injury,” one user wrote.

Others criticized the officers' handling of the situation. “All over a seatbelt?” another user commented. Several users suggested that officers should have used different tactics or tools during the arrest. “Use the taser and remember your training,” one commenter wrote.

Others questioned whether the force used was proportionate, even if officers were injured during the encounter. “Not wearing your seatbelt is dangerous because of what the police might do to you if they catch you not wearing one,” another comment read.

The Daily Dot could not independently verify the location, the identities of those involved, or the charges against the passenger.