BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) - Bridgeport police are defending the actions of a police officer shown in an Internet video forcefully arresting a teenager.
Police spokesman William Kaempffer says the officer was trying to control the youth who was charged with interfering with police after being stopped early Sunday morning for a curfew violation.
The video, which was posted on YouTube, shows the officer striking the teen while on the ground and putting him in a headlock.
Kaempffer says police are allowed to use force when necessary to make an arrest, “especially when a suspect is resisting, as was the case here.”
Kaempffer says the officer reported the teen was trying to stand up, refused to provide his hands to be handcuffed and was grabbing at the officer’s duty belt.
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