Video: Cop Punches Woman

By: Rob Adams
06/16/2010 12:18 PM ET

Seattle cop punches woman during a routine jaywalking stop. The woman is actually a teen and the photo shows the officer throwing the fist on video. Investigators are reviewing the incident and will soon making a decision on the officer’s conduct.

“He did nothing wrong,” Rich O’Neill, president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild, said in a statement. “If anything, I think he maybe waited a little too long to engage in force because I think he was trying to defuse the situation.” The audio from the YouTube video shows the cop and a 17-year-old female arguing.

Coincidentally, the incident happened across Martin Luther King Jr. Way which will probably have Al Sharpton boarding the next flight to Seattle. It started when the cop approached a male for jaywalking, then the officer witnessed four females doing the same thing. He ordered all of them near his car, but one female was verbally antagonistic.

“The female subject began to tense up her arm and pull away from the officer while yelling at him,” police said in a statement. The two argued, and the officer attempted to cuff her. That is when, according to officials, another of the teens interceded.

“The second female subject placed her hands on the officer’s arm, causing the officer to believe she was attempting to physically affect the first subject’s escape,” police said. As the officer and the 17-year-old struggled, the teen can be seen pushing the officer, who then responds by punching her in the face. There was a crowd watching and a voice that can be heard on the videotape, “Are you serious?”