(CNN) --
A man in police custody hit his head against the wall of a prison van in the Connecticut town of New Haven on Father's Day, video released by the city shows, an incident his family said. on Tuesday that left him partially paralyzed.
Richard "Randy" Cox Jr., 36, suffered a serious neck and spinal injury while in the custody of New Haven police, and the incident is being investigated by the Connecticut State Police, the mayor said. Justin Elicker.
Five New Haven police officers, including the driver of the van, have been placed on administrative leave pending the investigation, Elicker said in a letter shared with New Haven residents on his Twitter account last week.
"What happened to Mr. Cox was simply appalling and completely unacceptable ... and will not be tolerated at the New Haven Police Department," the mayor said at a news conference Tuesday.
Cox, of New Haven, is in intensive care, his attorney Ben Crump said at a separate news conference Tuesday.
Cox's sister, Latoya Boomer, said her brother has a breathing tube and a feeding tube.
He can move his left arm and nod or shake his head, she said Tuesday.
The incident occurred June 19, when New Haven police arrested Cox on suspicion of unlawful possession of a firearm and other charges, Elicker wrote.
Court documents obtained by CNN show that he has been charged with "threatening," a felony charge, among others.
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While a prisoner van was transporting Cox to a New Haven police holding facility, an officer who was driving "made a sudden stop to avoid a car accident" and Cox, in the back of the van, was injured, Elicker wrote.
The city released six videos related to Cox and his arrest, one of which shows Cox, unsecured on the bench of the truck he was in, sliding headfirst into the interior wall of the truck behind the vehicle's cab. .
Elicker has said the truck was not equipped with seat belts.
Some of the released footage also shows multiple officers removing him from the van and putting him in a wheelchair.
On the recordings, Cox repeatedly tells officers he can't move and asks for help, but they keep telling him to sit down, move his legs or give him other instructions.
Later, Cox is shown being dragged into a cell, where he is propped up against a bed.
As an agent leaves, Cox falls to the ground and ends up lying on his back.
The videos are from the officers' body cameras and a camera that is inside the back of the police van.
"Randy Cox is lying in that hospital bed paralyzed from the chest down due to the actions and inaction of the New Haven Police Department," Crump said.
The officers placed on administrative leave include the van driver, three officers at the detention center and the facility's supervisor, Elicker wrote.
They are also the subject of a department internal affairs investigation, she said.
The New Haven Police Department, when asked for comment by CNN, referred to comments members of the department made at previous news conferences.
"Mr. Cox was mistreated. He should have received immediate medical attention," Deputy Police Chief Karl Jacobson said at Tuesday's news conference with the mayor.
"We cannot defend anything that has been published."
The Connecticut State Police declined CNN's request for comment, apart from saying it could not yet release any records in the case because it is under investigation.
What the video shows
Footage from inside the van shows Cox entering the rear of the vehicle and immediately beginning to throw his body against the metal side of the vehicle.
The agents do not put any type of seat belt on him for the trip to the detention center.
He then lays down on the floor as soon as the truck speeds up and starts kicking the doors of the truck repeatedly.
Cox, whose wrists are handcuffed behind his back, sits back down on the bench that runs along the side of the truck.
He is sitting for about 10 seconds.
According to speed data included in the video, the vehicle is going 35 miles per hour when a horn sounds and Cox slides off the bank and falls sideways, hitting his head against the metal wall behind the truck's cab. truck while the speedometer descends in seconds to 0.
Body camera video of the officer driving the van shows him honking his horn multiple times as he appears to suddenly slow down.
Cox is heard yelling "help" several times and telling the officer that he fell and couldn't get up.
The officer asks if he's okay and tells Cox that a car pulled up in front of the truck and nearly hit them.
When Cox is heard yelling from behind, the officer says to Cox, "I can't hear you. What's going on?"
Cox begs the officer to stop the truck, repeatedly saying that he can't move and that he thinks he broke his neck.
The agent says, "You're going to have to give me a second. I can't open the door without another agent here."
The agent keeps driving.
A minute later, the officer tells her that he will bring an ambulance for her when they get to the detention center and repeats that he will not open the door.
After nearly another minute passes as Cox struggles to communicate with the agent, Cox repeats that he broke his neck.
The agent replies, "I'm stopping. I'm going to check you out."
After stopping the van, approximately 3 1/2 minutes after the incident occurred, the officer goes back and opens the door.
"I fell. I can't move my arms," says Cox.
The agent replies, "I can't move you. So I have to call an ambulance."
The agent can then be seen calling the call center for an ambulance to meet them at the detention center.
Keep driving.
About eight and a half minutes after Cox crashed into the interior wall of the van, they arrive at the detention center.
The officers open the door, and as they prepare to get into the van to help, one officer warns the others, "Be careful, I was kicking the door and everything."
An agent gets into the van to try to lift Cox up.
The officer removes his handcuffs and other officers are heard telling him to turn around.
The officers try to move Cox's legs, and he tells them they're not listening and he can't move.
An agent replies, "You're not even trying."
Cox is told to slide out of the truck.
He can be heard saying, "Look, look, if you have to drag me, do what you have to do."
The agents pull Cox out of the truck by his feet and he begins to fall to the ground.
Two agents hold him by the arms while another gets a wheelchair.
An agent tells Cox that he had too much to drink and to sit down.
The agents put Cox in the wheelchair and he fell.
Cox says, "I can't feel a ****, bro."
An agent yells at Cox to sit down.
Then Cox gets up again and drops into the wheelchair.
Cox begins to fall out of the wheelchair again when two officers appear to hold him up.
After Cox is processed into jail, the video shows him appearing to have partially slipped out of the wheelchair seat.
The officers drag him from his wheelchair, across the floor into a holding cell, and then prop him up against the bed.
As the last agent in the cell walks away, Cox falls to the ground.
His ankles are shackled and the door to the holding cell is closed.
None of the six videos show the arrival of an ambulance or Cox's preparation for transport to the hospital.
The police union will provide legal support to officers
Elicker, the mayor, wrote that people in the custody of the New Haven Police Department should be treated in a dignified, respectful and safe manner.
"I am also concerned that the actions of the officers involved in this incident fall far short of that and do not reflect the high standards I know other police officers hold themselves to every day as they risk their lives to protect and serve our residents and keep us safe," he wrote.
New Haven Police Union Elm City Local President Florencio Cotto sent a statement to CNN about the incident.
"Due to the nature of the events surrounding the transportation injury of an arrested subject, the New Haven Police Union has been inundated with press inquiries from across the country. As the case has escalated into an investigation active criminal, the New Haven Police Union has been inundated with press inquiries from across the country. Haven Police Union will not provide any detailed comment at this time. However, we will provide legal support and representation to the officers involved in the case. In addition , we will ensure that all due process protections are provided to these same officers,” he said.
At Tuesday's press conference, the mayor announced that the transport vehicles will be removed as the police department develops new procedures.
Until then, prisoners will be transported in police patrol cars in which they must wear seat belts.
At that news conference, Jacobson, the deputy police chief, said that according to department protocol, people in custody should not be touched if they say they are injured.
"That's part of the protocol, so we're going to enforce it. And we're going to look at every single thing related to the arrest. Transportation. Everything. That's why we're removing the vans, and we're transporting in cars," Jacobson said.
At a community meeting organized by the NAACP, Jacobson said "this is not a proud moment for me or for the police department."
“We are all heartbroken by what happened, and I also want justice for Randy.
We're going to work hard to make changes," Jacobson said, at the meeting recorded by CNN affiliate WFSB.
"I watched it 20 times to remind me what I need to do with this police department and the changes I need to make because we have good cops, but someone has to say something.
"So I watched it multiple times because I don't want to forget what happened. And I want this community to know that we're going to do everything we can to get justice for Randy and we're praying for his health and recovery."
Family says treatment of Cox is 'a disgrace'
The office told CNN it would not release any details about Cox or his arrest.
Cox has been charged with three felonies and two misdemeanors related to his June 19 arrest.
The felonies are threats, criminal possession of a firearm and carrying a handgun without a permit, according to court documents filed in state superior court.
He was also charged with two misdemeanors: disorderly conduct and threats, according to the documents.
Cox's sister, Boomer, called Tuesday for the officers involved to be fired and arrested.
Any observer who saw what was happening but didn't speak up should be suspended and retrained, she said.
She said she couldn't watch all the videos of the incident.
"I started watching the videos and the treatment of him was disgraceful," she said.
Doctors are hopeful but not optimistic about Cox's medical future, attorneys said.
Attorney Lou Rubano, who also spoke at the news conference, said Cox was "in tears every time he went to the hospital. While he realized what was going on, he didn't understand the full extent of his injuries. But he knows that there is a chance that he may never walk again.
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