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Whoa, this was decisive: LAPD Chief Charlie Beck announced tonight that he has relieved Foothill division commander Capt. Joseph Hiltner for his "severely deficient" response to the appearance of excessive force used against a handcuffed woman in Pacoima. "Proper steps were not taken, including appropriate notifications and the removal of the involved officers from the field,'' Beck said at a presser at the LAPD building. "Because of these issues, I have removed him from his command and initiated downgrade procedures. Every Los Angeles police officer, regardless of rank, will be held accountable for their actions.''
A few hours earlier, Beck had said on KPCC's Patt Morrison show that he was very concerned by the video he saw of two officers throwing Michelle Jordan to the ground after they handcuffed her during a traffic stop. He said that a criminal investigation of the officers' actions was underway as well as an internal probe.
The incident was caught on the security video of a Del Taco on Foothill Boulevard. Jordan, 34 and a registered nurse, said through her lawyers that she had been stopped for using a cellphone while driving. She got out of her car and was quite possibly arguing with the officers before she was cuffed and thrown around. KCAL, which has been ahead on this story, aired the video.
Jordan was taken in and booked for interfering and resisting arrest, then released on her own recognizance, police said. The officers, one with 22 years of service and the other a probationary officer with 10 months on the job, were reassigned to non-field duties pending
the outcome of investigations.
Earlier today: Beck calls Pacoima arrest very disturbing, reveals criminal probe
