Video footage has emerged of a teenager begging for mercy from a Mesa, Ariz. police officer who exerted force to subdue her last week.
On Friday evening, Luis Paul Puleo Santiago uploaded the video to Facebook with the following description:
Just watched mesa PD punch a 15 year old girl in the face 2 times she was a runaway is this rely how we treat emotionally unstable teens? The cops wanted to delete this off my phone share the f*** out of this s***.
According to ABC 15, the 15-year-old girl's mother called the Mesa Police Department for help when the girl got out of her car and refused to return. ABC 15 adds that the girl has a history of running away from home. Esteban Flores of the Mesa Police Department said officers asked the girl to stop three times before a female officer grabbed her. This prompted the girl to kick the officer, then punch her in the face.
The video appears to show the officer punching the teen, then placing her elbow near her throat, prompting her to scream "I can't breathe" in pain. Those were the last words of Eric Garner, who died in July after being placed in a chokehold by NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo. A Staten Island grand jury decided not to indict Pantaleo last week.
The girl was placed in handcuffs before being treated for her injuries at the scene. She later conceded to a psychiatric evaluation, and ABC 15 reports that aggravated assault charges against her are pending. The officer was also reportedly treated for minor injuries at the scene.
The incident remains under investigation.
[via ABC 15]
