A widely circulated video of an Austin police officer inappropriately touching a detained woman's breasts has sparked outrage on social media, with many demanding answers from the Austin Police Department and calling for the officer's firing.
Now, a Change.org petition set up for the woman alleges the police officer who groped the woman has been stalking her for nearly a decade.
Woman Groped While Performing Search
The viral video that is being circulated on social media shows the woman, identified as Linda Nuno Trevino, detained with her hands behind her back in front of a police cruiser. Trevino can be seen jerking away from the officer when he grabs her breast while performing a search on the woman.
The officer allegedly assaults the woman twice in the clip as she demands a female officer. "Don't f*cking touch her like that," a bystander can be heard yelling in the background. "Get your f*cking hands off of her." Watch the video below:
Although officers are legally allowed to search people of any gender, many women request female officers for comfort and safety. It is not yet known why a female officer was not made available to perform the search and the Austin Police Department is now investigating the incident.
Officer Has Been Harassing Trevino for Years
In the wake of the assault, a Change.org petition has been set up for Trevino claiming that the officer, identified as Officer Brian, has been stalking and terrorizing the victim for nine years.
According to the online petition, Officer Brian first met Trevino during a domestic disturbance call and responded to a few more disturbances involving her and her boyfriend. The page claims he then started stalking her and showing up at her residence unannounced, constantly calling her and demanding to go on a date with him even though she was "uncomfortable."
"Things got worse when Linda and her boyfriend broke up, as he saw there was no barrier or anyone to 'respect' anymore. One night, when Linda had taken sleeping pills, he let himself in and they began talking. She fell asleep on the couch and woke up naked, having been raped," the petition reads.
Trevino then allegedly became pregnant and four months into her pregnancy, the officer convinced her to move in with him to protect "his baby" and started controlling "her every move."
Custody Dispute
The petition alleges that after the birth of her daughter, Tiffany, Trevino moved in with her sister and Brian then dragged her to court over custody of the child. Brian allegedly filed complaints stating Trevino was an unfit mother and the court eventually sided with Brian, giving him full custody of the child. The Austin Police Department also defended his actions and protected him as an officer, the petition says.
In 2017, before Tiffany turned four years old, Trevino apparently proved via a paternity test that Brian was not the father of the child. Despite having no right to the child's custody and being revoked of parental rights, he still has full custody of Tiffany while her mother is only permitted to see her three times a month, for two hours, supervised.
The appeal also cites evidence including photos of bodily harm inflicted on Tiffany by Brian, audio recordings of phone calls with Tiffany, text messages sent to her by Brian and "all of the horrors she has experienced for 9 years."
The petition is now raising funds to cover Trevino's legal expenses to win back her daughter's custody and calls for authorities to launch an immediate investigation into Brian's misconduct, including years of harassment, abuse and sexual assault and fire him from duty.
