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LAPD Commander Demoted In Wake of Claims His Cops Roughed Up a Woman During Traffic Stop
Photo of an LAPD squad car by dgershwin via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr
Los Angeles Police Department Capt. Joseph Hiltner was removed from his post as commanding officer of the Foothill Division Wednesday by Chief Charlie Beck, in the wake of an investigation into claims two officers under his supervision used excessive force in a recent traffic stop.Beck says Hitner was "severely deficient in his response" to the arrest, reports City News Service, in which two officers allegedly roughed up a woman they pulled over outside a fast food joint for being on her cellphone.
The arrest of Michelle Jordan was caught on surveillance video, which shows the two officers throwing Jordan to the ground in order to cuff her, then throwing her down again before putting her in the squad car. The two officers cap off the arrest with a fist bump.
Beck says Hiltner failed to follow procedure in the wake of the arrest and the ensuing claim brought on by Jordan, including not making the "appropriate notifications" or initiating "the removal of the involved officers from the field."
The Chief is also calling for a "criminal and administrative investigation'' into the arrest and allegations of use of excessive force.
The officers, one with 22 years of service and the other a probationary officer with 10 months on the job, were reassigned to non-field duties pending the outcome of the investigation, police said.
Jordan, a 34-year-old nurse who stands 5'4", says she sustained severe bruises and scrapes in the encounter. She admits she used profanities and was upset during the traffic stop, but believes her behavior did not warrant such an aggressive response from the officers.
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