Assault: Georgia Sheriff’s deputy begins compulsory leave
Clayton County Sheriff’s Office has said that a sheriff’s deputy in the Atlanta area has been placed on administrative leave after social media video surfaced showing the deputy “using physical force on a man”.
This was disclosed in an official released on Saturday from the Sheriff’s office.
Sheriff Victor Hill ordered his entire Internal Affairs Unit to come in and begin an investigation that has been on going since 8 pm on Friday
The Deputy involved will be placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, according to the statement.
In the video shared on Instagram, two deputies were holding a man on the ground and striking him in the face, and one deputy can be heard yelling, “he bit my hand!”
A separate video taken from another angle shows children in a car nearby crying and one can be heard yelling, “daddy!”
No feedback has yet been received from Sheriff’s office regarding more details
Clayton County is a suburban county located just south of the city of Atlanta.
The man arrested by deputies was identified by his attorneys as Roderick Walker, who has two counts of battery and two counts of obstructing or hindering law enforcement officers.
Torris Butterfield, an attorney hired to represent Walker, said he met with his client for two hours on Saturday and he is actively trying to get bond set so that Walker can be released.
Butterfield said he is going to try and bring this case to an amicable resolution on the criminal charges.
Speaking at a news conference Saturday night outside the Clayton County jail, attorney Shean Williams said the incident occurred after Walker, his girlfriend and one of his children had returned a rental car.
They approached a rideshare vehicle and negotiated a ride home at an agreed-upon rate with the driver, who was off-duty at the time.
But then the car was then pulled over for what was described as a tail-light violation, according to Williams.
Williams said that deputies demanded that Walker show his ID; however, he did not have it with him.
The deputies became upset when he asked why they needed the ID before they told him to exit the car, leading to the officers’ use of force, according to Williams.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said they have not received a request to investigate the incident, while the name of the deputy has not been released.
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