Danny Lim has been released from hospital with a plan in place for ongoing monitoring. Thank you staff at St Vincent’s Darlinghurst for the loving care.Thank you to the community for your love & support, hope to get our happy icon back with his smiles and his signs. #beautifulpic.twitter.com/k4ZclbOCyg
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He suffered a brain bleed and a black eye and was referred to a neurosurgeon on Wednesday who decided on Thursday morning it was safe for him to return home. Lim’s lawyer posted on Twitter that his condition would continue to be monitored.
A video of the 78-year-old’s arrest on Tuesday showed Lim appearing to fall headfirst into the tiled ground of the Queen Victoria Building while two police officers held his arms.
While he was on the floor, police handcuffed him and then sat him up. He could be seen bleeding from his forehead.
One witness has since come forward and Lim was begging the officers to call an ambulance minutes before police attempted to arrest him.
“He let them know very clearly that he had PTSD, and that he needed an ambulance,” the witness said.
“He voiced that very clearly at the outset. He became increasingly agitated as they approached him.”
Lim also spoke to journalists from hospital following the incident and said he had informed the officers of his PTSD and asked for help.
NSW Police said in a statement Lim was asked to leave the QVB by security and didn’t. Security then called the cops.
“Police will allege the man was subsequently issued with a move-on direction and failed to comply,” the statement said.
“The man’s arrest was discontinued after he struggled with police and sustained an injury to his cheekbone.”
NSW Police initially announced an independent review of the incident but are now treating it as a complaint to be reviewed internally.
NSW Greens MP wrote to the Police Commissioner demanding an independent review.
“This type of violent arrest can happen to anyone, anywhere. It is so important to have independent oversight of police operations to ensure that this type of violence is properly investigated and prosecuted if a crime has been committed,” she wrote.
“In 2019/20 the NSW Police were the subject of 298 civil suits that alleged a variety of actions including assault, battery, unlawful imprisonment and malicious prosecution. This is more than one each weekday of the year.”
protesting police brutality was called for Wednesday evening and another is scheduled in Newtown for Thursday.
Organisers called people to “stand for justice, stand for peaceful protest and stand up for Danny Lim”.
Attendees were asked to wear sandwich boards reminiscent of Lim’s iconic props.
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