Two California police officers were trying to stop another cop who was repeatedly punching a handcuffed woman while arresting her in an incident caught on video. The shocking video, obtained by TMZ, shows police were trying to detain a handcuffed woman on the side of an Orange County road Wednesday, when she fell to the ground. One officer is then seen randomly punching the woman.
Moments later two if his colleagues come and try to restrain him but he is seen showing aggression toward the woman, despite she being handcuffs. The video has since gone viral and once again comes just a day after former cop Derek Chauvin was pronounced guilty of killing a Black man George Floyd in police custody last year.
Punched on Face
Cellphone footage shows two officers forcibly take the handcuffed woman down before one cop starts punching her in the head. A third officer immediately comes running and shouts at the officer as his peers push him away from the woman. The officer can be seen punching the woman at least twice before another cop pushes him off the suspect and deescalates the situation.
The officer can be heard shouting "No, stop!" before pushing his college off the suspect. Bystanders can be heard exclaiming in disbelief as the chaotic scene as other can be heard shouting "oh no." The woman can also be heard cursing at the man for punching her in the head.
The officer has since been placed on administrative leave while an internal affairs investigation takes place, according to TMZ. The officer hasn't been identified yet. The WPD Internal Affairs Division is also in talks with the Orange County District Attorney's Office to determine whether criminal charges will be warranted for the officer's use of force.
Police Brutality Continues
Police also haven't identified the woman. The video shows the woman badly bruised. She was taken to a nearby hospital but was later booked into the Orange County jail. Police were called to the scene after getting calls that a female adult suspect was assaulting an adult Asian woman who had tried to rescue a dog running in the street.
According to police, when officers showed up, the Hispanic adult exhibited signs of being under the influence and, while waiting for paramedics, she was not compliant and got combative with officers. A WPD Officer "used force and struck [the woman] two times in the face with his first. Two WPD Officers immediately intervened and deescalated the situation," according to a statement about the incident obtained by TMZ.
The shocking video comes amid a nationwide reckoning with police brutality and just a day after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of the May 2020 murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Three other Minneapolis officers, who have been fired, also face charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder as well as second-degree manslaughter, for not stopping Chauvin from killing Floyd.
