Screengrab from the viral video showing cops manhandling the woman. Source: Twitter
Ohio (US): Following a viral video showing two Ohio cops overpowering and repeatedly punching an unarmed African-American woman over a petty dispute at McDonalds, an inquiry has been initiated, officials informed.
Butler Township Police Sgt. Todd Stanley is shown in the video, which was presumably recorded by a bystander, grappling with the woman and striking her at least three times in the face.
The woman, later identified as Latinka Hancock, is then taken into custody by Mr. Stanley and a coworker.
According to Ms. Hancock’s attorney, the woman had to be transported to the hospital for treatment after suffering a concussion and a bleeding face.
As the criticism over the incident on Monday mounted, it became clear that the incident involving Ms. Hancock had preceded a dispute at a McDonald’s.
According to reports, she returned to the establishment to argue with the workers because she was irate over a bad food order.
According to reports, the caller told the emergency responders, “She’s upset over a $.30 piece of cheese.”
Watch video:
They eventually dialed the police, who were originally seen speaking with Ms. Hancock as she attempted to push them away. The cop then appears to punch her in the face at that point.
The department posted on Facebook, saying, “We are aware of the bystander video that is making the rounds onFacebook regarding an incident that happened on January 16, 2023, involving two of our officers.
In a press conference on Wednesday, Butler Township Police Chief John Porter promised that an impartial inquiry will be conducted. Butler Township is a suburb of Dayton.
He said that the 22-year police veteran officer had been put on administrative leave. Tim Zellers, the other cop involved, was named.
Mr. Porter asserted that Ms. Hancock was resisting the cops’ attempts to arrest her for trespassing.
“We take these incidents very seriously and we are looking into them and we are going to conduct a thorough investigation,” he said, vowing that he planned to make available all police body camera footage.
“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.”
However, there is growing outrage over what many believe to be yet another instance of the police using excessive force against a person of colour.
In no time, many people criticised police over the incident via comments of the Facebook post.
“They should both be fired. They completely mistreated that woman. I’m horrified. Why? Was it a result of her race?One woman wrote.
(With inputs from agencies)
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