Investigation into California cop after footage of her hitting teenage boy at high school went viral

An investigation into a California cop has been launched after footage of her hitting a teenage boy at a high school went viral, police said. ​

The officer was reassigned duties after the video of her striking the 16-year-old at Fairfield High School on May 20 went viral online.​ In chaotic scenes, the student was seen lying on the floor as the officer pinned him to the ground.

Fairfield Police Chief Dan Marshall apologized for the incident and said an external organization would carry out an independent investigation into what happened.

At a press conference on Friday, the family of the student, who is named Maurice Williams, said he suffered from headaches and “dizzy spells” afterwards.

​“That bothered me to see my grandbaby lying there,” one person said at the press conference. “Getting beat like a dog. Hair pulled.”​

​In body-cam footage shared by the Fairfield Police Department, the officer appears to hit the student while pinning him to the ground after another individual tried to arrest him. ​

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“Give me your f***ing hands,” she appears to shout. ​

In a press release, a spokesperson for the Fairfield Police Department wrote that a school resource officer had responded to a physical altercation involving multiple students on campus.

During the incident, a student allegedly fought a school official who had tried to break up the fight. ​

The officer requested emergency assistance and claimed that one student had tried to retrieve an item from a backpack during the fight, police say. Two backpacks were eventually confiscated, with police discovering “sharp objects,” including a screwdriver, inside. ​

One of the students was taken to the school office, while an officer made contact with a second student who was “continuing to try to fight.” ​

After the second student ran into a group of people, he was eventually located again with an officer trying to detain him.

A “takedown technique” was used to place him on the ground before the student “tensed his arms” as an officer tried to place his hand behind his back, police said. A “distraction strike” was delivered before “additional” strikes followed. Eventually, the student complied and was arrested. ​

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Fairfield Police Chief Dan Marshall said in his own statement that a school resource officer had called additional patrol officers to the campus. He also addressed the viral videos of the incident.​

“One of the videos that has circulated depicts an officer striking a male student in the head, and there have been rumors that the student was already handcuffed at the time,” Marshall wrote. “I want to clarify that the student was not handcuffed during the incident.”​

According to Marshall, the officer delivered the blows to “gain compliance” and to get to his hands in order to handcuff him. ​

​“I am sorry this incident occurred and that it has caused division and concern within our community,” Marshall added. “The Fairfield Police Department values its relationship with the community we serve, and we remain committed to maintaining and strengthening that trust moving forward.”

The Independent has contacted the Fairfield Police Department for further comment.

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