Fla. Police Officer Fired After Hitting Handcuffed Woman

A Florida police officer who was seen on video repeatedly hitting a handcuffed woman has been fired and charged with battery in the incident, CNN reports.

Officer Akinyemi Borisade, 26, arrested the woman, Mayra Martinez, at a local bar for trespassing and resisting arrest Wednesday. Martinez, a new employee at the bar, had reportedly gotten into an argument with her employer and was asked to leave, prompting a response from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. When officers attempted to escort her off the property, she reportedly became belligerent, refusing to be handcuffed and trying to kick and bite officers. 

While in the patrol car, she continued to lash out, resulting in her being restrained, CNN notes. She was then transported to the Duval County jail. 

While there, Martinez was seen in the video lashing out with her foot at Borisade as he positioned her next to a wall. Borisade responded by hitting Martinez, who was still handcuffed, multiple times in her midsection. 

“He could have turned her around and held her in a transporting position that they are trained in back over to the location to wait by the door,” Jacksonville Undersheriff Pat Ivey said in a news conference. “He could have stood there with her, but there was no need to strike her.”

Corrections officers who witnessed the incident notified supervisors about what happened. Martinez was released and currently has no pending court date, according to CNN.

Borisade, however, was charged with battery and fired the next day. Because he is still in his mandatory probationary 18-month period, he cannot appeal his termination and will not be afforded any civil service protections, Ivey said. 

Read more at CNN.