From [HERE] The Sarasota Police Department is now investigating several of its own.

An internal affairs investigation was launched after a traffic stop Sunday night where, some say, the police department went too far.

On Monday, a video began circulating on social media.

In the footage, recorded by a witness, a man is seen on the ground surrounded by police officers.

The man in the video, 40-year-old Govinda Howell, was resisting arrest after a traffic stop, according to Sarasota police.

According to police, officers were traveling westbound on 23rd Street from North Osprey Avenue when they saw a vehicle stopped in the center of the road.  After stopping in the road, the vehicle began to travel west on 23rd Street in the eastbound lanes to the intersection of 23rd Street and Maple Avenue. 

Police say the car traveled through a stop sign, so a traffic stop was initiated.

Officers maintain that Howell refused to get out of the car, where he was a passenger. {and for what reasons would a passenger need to get out of the car after a routine traffic stop?]

They also claim he appeared to be reaching for something under the seat. Officers also say the man was extremely agitated and appeared to be under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol.

They also observed the man placing narcotics in his mouth and chew them.

However, Howell's family and those close to the investigation tell a very different story.

They claim Howell has bipolar disorder, is mentally retarded and was brutally beaten for no reason.  

Community activists spoke with WFLA and tell us that the 40-year-old is now fighting for his life in a coma at Sarasota Memorial Hospital.

"Somehow they ended up brutally beating this guy so bad that he ended up in a coma and we don't know if he's going to survive," said Sarasota activist Bryan Ellis. 

"We can stop this by demanding community oversight of the police, demanding real accountability and community control because that's what we need."