Police officers who handcuffed and sprayed a 9-year-old child with pepper spray during an intervention Friday in Rochester, New York, were suspended Monday at the mayor’s request.
“Unfortunately, the laws of the State (of New York) and the collective agreement prevent me from taking more rapid and serious measures,” said the councilor, Lovely Warren, in a statement sent to AFP.
The town hall did not specify how many officers were affected by this suspension, which will last at least until the conclusion of the internal investigation conducted by the Rochester police.
At least seven police officers were present at the scene on Friday, according to images released on Sunday.
Rochester Deputy Police Chief Andre Anderson said the little girl was suffering from a delusional episode, in which she threatened to kill her mother and commit suicide.
In the images, the police try to reason with the child, before handcuffing him and seating him in one of their vehicles.
The child shouts and revolts, after which an officer sprinkles him with pepper spray, further accentuating his nervousness.
Andre Anderson said the police were not trying to arrest the little girl but take her to hospital, where she was eventually transported, before being released a few hours later.
The footage caused a stir far beyond Rochester and sparked many reactions.
On Monday, despite the snow and the temperature well below zero, dozens of people gathered in Rochester to protest the new incident.
“Rochester has to face a real problem of accountability of its police,” responded Monday the governor of the State of New York, Andrew Cuomo, in a statement.
Rochester police had, in fact, experienced another scandal in September, with the revelation of the arrest of an African-American, Daniel Prude, suffocated by police officers before dying later.
The forensic institute had concluded, after autopsy, that the death of Daniel Prude was a homicide, linked to “asphyxiation resulting from a physical constraint”.
The scandal had prompted protests in Rochester and New York to demand reforms in the Rochester police force and prompted its leader, La’Ron Singletary, an African-American, to quit his post in September.
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