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A man caught on camera whacking a female police officer on the head with a snare drum was arrested and identified.
Police officers identified Brian Mendoza, 23, as the man in the video above who took a "cheap shot" at a police officer, according to the Los Angeles Times. The incident happened during an otherwise mostly peaceful protest in downtown Los Angeles near Pershing Square on May Day.
Police called Mendoza a "transient" and said this isn't the first time he has been accused of assaulting an officer: he is on probation for attacking an officer in El Monte.
A user named edpilolla uploaded the video to YouTube, and he explained what happened at the scene:
The crowd of 5,000 or so in downtown Los Angeles Monday wanted to march along Fifth Street to Pershing Square, but the police blocked the way. The march was supposed to end at Pershing Square, so blocking the way created an unnecessary confrontation. I looked to shoot a gap in the line of officers. I don't condone violence. And I don't keep quiet about it, no matter who does the swinging. All the folks I know in the Occupy Movement are non-violent, and I look forward to peacefully participating in more events that show our fearless leaders what we think of this economy they have created. But hitting someone, especially a small woman, in the back of the head with something like a snare drum is an especially needless act of violence. I repudiate it.
