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Maryland police today defended the restraining and pepper-spraying of a 15-year-old girl they said was not cooperating after a traffic accident, saying that the actions of officers involved an appropriate amount of force.
The Hagerstown Police Department released bodycam videos that show officers attempting to restrain the girl and later, one officer pepper-spraying the teen as other officers attempt to close the door of the police car they have put her in.
The girl, whose identity was not released, was charged with disorderly conduct, two counts of second-degree assault, possession of marijuana and failure to obey a traffic device, police said. The matter was referred to the Department of Juvenile Services.
Story: https://t.co/BzuUr4IdKoIn the almost 15 minutes of videos released by police, firefighters and the girl are on the scene when the first officer arrives. The officer asks the firefighter to "grab" the girl's information while he grabs the driver's. As the teen sits on her bike, the firefighter tells the officer that she does not want to be treated because she says she's not injured.
Video (Warning: I found this pretty difficult to watch): Facebook Video // Twitter Video
Update: The girl's attorney, Robin Ficker:
“They said ‘you have to come in, you can’t refuse treatment.’ Well there’s no Maryland law that says you can’t refuse treatment,” he told The Daily Beast. “They certainly don’t arrest every Jehovah’s Witness that refuses treatment. There’s no law that says you can’t refuse treatment.”
But Ficker said the force of the girl’s arrest contradicts the police argument that she required urgent treatment.
“Well if someone may have brain damage, why are you slamming her against a wall? Why are you putting her in a police car,” he said, “without a seatbelt, I might add, in violation of police policy.”
But police did not take her to a hospital, Ficker said. Instead, the girl was transported to the police station, where she was interrogated and charged with disorderly conduct, two counts of second degree assault, possession of marijuana and failure to obey a traffic device.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articl...-black-girl-after-she-falls-off-her-bike.html
In what world does it take 3-4 police officers, handcuffs and pepper spray to deal with a 15 girl who was in an accident with a vehicle? This one.