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Texas officer says leading man by rope would look 'bad'

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HOUSTON -- Body camera footage shows a white Texas police officer saying twice that leading a homeless black man by a rope down city streets while he and his partner were on horseback would look "bad."

Two Galveston police officers arrested 43-year-old Donald Neely in August, accusing him of criminal trespass.

Images showing the officers leading Neely caused public outrage, leading to a Texas Rangers investigation and a Galveston County Sheriff's Office review.

In the body camera footage released Wednesday, Officer Patrick Brosch asks his partner, Officer Amanda Smith, whether she should go get their truck so they don't have to make Neely walk. Smith indicated no.

Brosch can be heard on the video saying, "This is gonna look really bad."

The Texas Rangers determined that the officers didn't break the law.