Video Appears to Show Texas Officer Striking Teenage Girl

The 14-year-old was charged with assaulting a public servant
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted May 24, 2017 6:35 PM CDT
Video Appears to Show Texas Officer Striking Teenage Girl
A 14-year-old girl who was seen in a video apparently being punched by an officer multiple times outside a birthday party last weekend appears in juvenile court Monday in San Antonio, Texas.   (Bob Owen)

The San Antonio Police Department is reviewing police body camera footage after a bystander posted video online that appears to show an officer punching an eighth-grade girl three or four times outside a birthday party last weekend, the AP reports. The grainy footage was shot late Saturday outside an event center where authorities say officers were called about men fighting at a quinceanera. An incident report described a volatile scene outside the event center, with multiple people fighting and onlookers angered by the police response. The girl was in the crowd with her mother and brother. The video appears to show the girl step toward the officer before he strikes her for the first time. He lunges forward and delivers another blow, causing her to twist backward and fall into people standing nearby. He appears to hit her again before he and other officers grab her and arrest her.

The 14-year-old girl was arrested on a charge of assaulting a public servant, a San Antonio police spokesperson said. Artessia House, a lawyer for the girl, denies that the teen struck the officer. She told the San Antonio Express-News that the girl is an honor roll student with no history of violence. The girl was taken to a juvenile detention center Saturday and was released Monday after appearing in juvenile court. Police Chief William McManus said in a statement that the teen's arrest is being reviewed "to ensure compliance with department policies." (More police brutality stories.)

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