Officer on leave after tussle with Hot Springs skateboarders
Hot Springs police have placed an officer on administrative leave while they investigate an Internet video that appears to show him choking three teenagers who were skateboarding.
Mayor Mike Bush said investigators have talked with passers-by and business owners who saw Officer Joey Williams stop the teens on a downtown sidewalk Thursday. A YouTube video shows Williams apparently choking one teen after forcing him to the ground, while later chasing and wrestling two others while holding them in a headlock.
Bush says he does not condone the officer’s actions. Police spokesman McCrary Means says the department will release more details later.
Williams could not be immediately reached for comment.
The video shows the youths along Hot Springs’ Central Avenue, an area where city ordinance prohibits skateboarding. Voices in the background can be heard asking Williams why he was arresting the youths.
No tags
