Police Officer Filmed Grabbing Colleague By Her Throat Charged With Battery And Assault
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Featured Image Credit: YouTube/WPLG Local 10
A police officer who was caught grabbing a colleague by her throat in bodycam footage has been charged with battery and assault.
Officials have said that Florida police sergeant Christopher Pullease was charged with battery and assault on a fellow police officer.
In a statement, Broward State Attorney's Office also confirmed that Pullease had been charged with assault on a civilian and a count of evidence tampering.
All four incidents occurred in November last year during the arrest of a man in the city of Sunrise, Florida.
The 47-year-old is accused of 'intentionally touching or striking' his fellow officer against her will, assaulting her by holding his can of pepper spray to her face and assaulting a civilian by holding the pepper spray up to his face.
If convicted on these charges made against him, Pullease faces up to five years in jail for battery of an officer, while assaulting her has a sentence of one year's imprisonment.
Florida @SunrisePoliceFL Sgt. Christopher Pullease caught on video grabbing young officer by the throat after she stops him from pepper spraying handcuffed suspect #BecauseFlorida: https://t.co/VcghOOtoJMpic.twitter.com/RIP9Ybvxss
— Billy Corben (@BillyCorben) January 14, 2022
Assaulting the civilian carries a maximum sentence of 60 days in jail, the man assaulted was the person other officers from Sunrise police were attempting to arrest.
He is also accused of tampering with his phone in January this year, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
Bodycam footage obtained by NBC News appears to show Pullease grabbing the female officer by the throat after she moves in to take him away from the suspect.
Police say they were arresting a 'verbally and physically resistive' individual when the sergeant arrived and became aggressive.
Sunrise police chief Anthony W. Rosa said in a statement that the sergeant became 'aggressive' with the suspect and 'escalated' the situation.
Chief Rosa said Pullease's behaviour was 'inappropriate and unprofessional', while his intervention in the arrest 'unnecessarily elevated the demeanor of the suspect'.
A statement from the Fraternal Order of Police criticised Rosa for 'publicly ridiculing' the sergeant while an investigation into his conduct was underway.
They claimed Rosa had made 'provably false public statements to the media' and demanded he 'immediately recuse himself' from the investigation into Pullease.
Pullease has been on administrative leave during the investigation into the incident which occurred on 19 November, 2021.
As reported by CBS News, he was bonded out of jail following his arrest for the charges of assault and battery against a police officer, assault against a citizen and the allegation of evidence tampering.
UNILAD have contacted the Sunrise Police Department for comment.
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