Arizona cop seen tackling 15-year-old with no arms or legs, placing him in headlock for throwing tantrum in horrific video
TUCSON, ARIZONA: A sheriff deputy is under investigation after a video emerged showing him manhandling a teen quadruple amputee and wrestling him to the floor.
The video, which was released to KOLD News 13 by the Pima County Public Defender's office, was captured by another teen inside a group home in the Tucson area this past September.
The deputy had been called to the group home after the victim, a 15-year-old who been abandoned there by his parents, kicked over a garbage can and verbally threatened a worker.
In the eight-minute video of the incident, the deputy, who remains unidentified, can be first seen on top of the 15-year-old, who has no arms or legs. He then wrestles him to the floor, with the incensed teen heard shouting and swearing. The deputy can also be seen bending down to yell in the face of the boy and antagonizing him further.
He then proceeds to target the boy who had been filming the entire incident, slamming his head into a wall after he had restrained him with handcuffs. Both of the boys were then arrested on charges of disorderly conduct but were later released.
The Pima County Sheriff's Department, where the deputy in question is employed, said they were unaware of the altercation until the video emerged and that they would be launching an internal investigation.
"Men with badges should not be acting this way," said John Feinman, the Pima County Public Defender who is representing both the boys. "Men and women who do act this way should not have badges and guns."
Speaking to the Washington Post, he said that these "are kids who have already been traumatized in some way," and that if a parent reacted the same way the deputy did, "they might be arrested for child abuse."