A video posted to Facebook Monday showing a Philadelphia officer repeatedly punching a 16-year-old girl on the ground has sparked an investigation.
On Jan. 2, police told Global News they were responding to a radio broadcast for a “person with a weapon” at 2:45 p.m. when they found a group of 30 people fighting outside.
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One witness started filming the incident where you can initially see police attempting to break up the brawl.
The video shows a female police officer pushing a teenage girl away as she tries to resist. The teenage girl yells at the officer as she continues to push her.
The camera then briefly turns away before it catches the officer throwing the girl to the ground. The officer then gets on top of the girl before she swings at her repeatedly. The teenager tries to swing back before the officer pulls her up by her hair.
One witness told NBC that the police officer went too far.
“She’s 16 years old,” Takeema Bundy told NBC. “I don’t think she deserves that. The cop shouldn’t have done that. That lady was like 30 something.”
Police say the teenage girl — who has not been identified because she is a minor — struck the officer in the face knocking her glasses off before she took the young girl down to the ground.
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“Eventually the defendant was brought under control with the assistance of other responding uniformed officers. The officer sustained bruising to her right eye and cheek along with abrasions to the right knee but chose not to go to the hospital at this time,” the Philadelphia Police Department said in a statement.
Police say they are aware of the video and are investigating the incident further.
Police have charged the 16-year-old girl with assault on police, disorderly conduct and related charges. She was taken to hospital with neck pain.