Former officers charged after leaked video shows them slamming middle school student
After a video showing a police officer slamming a middle school student to the ground twice and another thrusting the student's face into a desk surfaced, the officers are facing minor charges.
On Friday, a Louisiana grand jury in West Baton Rouge Parish indicted former Brusly police officer Anthony “Kip” Dupre on a charge of malfeasance or wrongdoing in office and former officer Dan Cipriano on a charge of simple battery, CBS affiliate WAFB-TV reports.
The student's family believes the charges are a "slap on the wrist," their attorney Kwame Asante told Baton Rouge-based The Advocate. Asante said the teen was sent to the office for cursing on the playground. He then argued with a school administrator about how long he had to stay in detention. That was in October.
In the leaked video, Dupre is seen wrestling a 14-year-old middle school student to the ground in Brusly Middle School's office. The video shows the student going into the school office, speaking with administrators and attempting to walk out the door. Dupre is seen stopping the student and slamming him to the ground. The two wrestle for over two minutes. It's unclear exactly what is taking place according to the video, which was mailed WAFB-TV, because most of the altercation is not visible.
At one point, Dupre is seen lifting the child in the air and slamming him to the ground a second time. Office workers appear concerned, one immediately leaving and others backing away. Cipriano enters the office to assist Dupre, slamming the student face-down into a desk. The student is led out of the office in handcuffs.
Dupre claimed the student reached for his gun during the struggle, The Advocate reports. In the video, a school administrator is seen taking something from the officer and placing it on the desk. Later, she is seen moving the item further back.
Cipriano and Dupre resigned from the Brusly police department in November.
It was not immediately known if either of the former officers had attorneys to represent them. USA TODAY has reached out to Asante, to Brusly police and to the school for comment.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow Ashley May on Twitter: @AshleyMayTweets
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Former officers charged after leaked video shows them slamming middle school student
