Ohio Cop Filmed Repeatedly Punching Black Woman in Face (+Video)
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Two police officers in the US state of Ohio are under investigation after a video of one of them allegedly punching a black woman in the face while making an arrest surfaced.
The video came to light on Tuesday, January 17, when local media shared footage on Facebook from a bystander showing a Butler Township officer repeatedly punching the woman.
The video apparently showed Sergeant Todd Stanley grappling with the woman and punching her at least three times in the face following a row over an order at McDonald’s. Stanley and his colleague, Tim Zellers, then detain the woman, later identified as Latinka Hancock.
In the footage, Hancock can be seen speaking to the officers as she tries to push them away. A cop on the left, Tim Zellers, appears to be pointing a stun gun in his right hand at Hancock. Meanwhile, an officer to the right, Todd Stanley, holds her arm and shoulder.
When Hancock waves her hands around, Stanley punches her in the face multiple times until Hancock falls back on the hood of the cruiser. The officers then hold Hancock against the car as Zellers handcuffs her.
Lawyer for Hancock said she suffered a bloody face and concussion, and had to be taken to hospital for treatment.
As per the reports, it said she was angry about an order that was wrong, and had gone back to remonstrate with the staff.
“We are aware of the video recorded by a bystander that is circulating on Facebook concerning an incident that occurred on January 16, 2023, involving two of our officers,” the department wrote on Facebook.
“This incident is currently under investigation in accordance with departmental policies and procedures, as is the case whenever force is used in an arrest,” The Independent quoted the police department as saying.
On Wednesday, John Porter, chief of the Butler Township Police force, held a press conference and assured a fair investigation would be carried out. He said the officer, a 22-year veteran of the force, had been placed on administrative leave. Porter claimed the officers had been trying to book Hancock for trespassing but that she did not cooperate.
“We take these incidents very seriously and we are looking into them and we are going to conduct a thorough investigation,” Porter was quoted by the Independent as saying. “We’re going to go as deep as we can into this. Like I said, if there’s indications of wrongdoing and against our policy, then we will definitely take formal action,” he added.
