A disturbing incident caught on camera at a group home for minors in Tucson, Arizona several months ago was brought to the attention of the Pima County Sheriff's Department, which has now opened an internal investigation into the actions of the deputy shown in the footage.
KOLD News 13 reports that the police were called to the group home when a 15-year-old quadruple amputee, shown in the video shirtless and on the floor of the facility's kitchen, knocked over a trash can and verbally threatened a staffer. The teenager has been living at the group home since being abandoned by his family.
The deputy, identified by the outlet as Manuel Van Santen, has reportedly been placed on administrative leave while the investigation is underway. A lawyer for the teenager said that he will likely pursue civil litigation.
When the officer arrived, at least two other people in the kitchen, including another minor, began filming the incident. The video was provided to KOLD News 13 by the Pima County Public Defender's Office.
In it, the deputy can be seen verbally confronting the 15-year-old amputee while standing above him. The public defender in the news segment says the officer also threatened both him and another teenager who was filming.
Before going on to arrest both teens on disorderly conduct charges, the deputy can be seen forcibly wrestling the amputee into the ground. Later, he gets up and arrests the teen filming, pushing his head into the wall.
On Thursday, KOLD showed the footage to the sheriff's department, and was told the department had not seen the video previously, nor was it aware of its existence. A representative of the department said a number of outcomes could occur as a result of the investigation, but did not specify further.
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