New Jersey couple Raymond Sykes and Kaila Boulware were traveling back to their home in New Jersey with their 9-month-old son after visiting Kaila's father in Florida for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Also in the vehicle were their two dogs, MANUELA and Rayla. Rayla is the 9-month old baby's puppy.
On the night of December 3rd, 2020, while driving through Troy, North Carolina at around 3 a.m., the family was stopped by two sheriff deputies.
Reports from the sheriff department states they were pulled over because they were driving with "a white tail light" and it was “being driven in a manner, place and time that was suspicious.”
When one of the officers stated that they were going to search the van, Raymond allegedly asked them "why?", raising concerns about the legality of searching their vehicle without a warrant.
That's when the situation took a bad turn, according to media reports. Rebecca Panico, writing for NJ Advance Media on NJ.com reports:
"Sheriff’s deputies from Montgomery County, N.C., drew their guns, violently beat Sykes with a baton in the baby’s presence and searched their vehicle for two hours.
The couple told NJ Advance Media they nervously complied with officers’ orders prior to the traffic stop escalating."
“Yahweh, please protect me,” Sykes said he shouted, hands in a prayer formation in the air as he walked toward the hood of the deputy’s car. “Don’t let these people hurt me.”
At the end of the two hour search of their vehicle, both parents were arrested and locked up, the baby was turned over to Child Protective Services and placed in Foster car, the two dogs were taken to an animal control center where the older one ended up dying, and the car was towed away.
Welcome to North Carolina.
