Two Videos Show Officer Violently Slamming High School Girl to the Ground in Classroom

[ariesgem]

A video circulating on social media today shows a South Carolina school officer choking a student, slamming her to the ground and then dragging her across a classroom floor while attempting to place her under arrest.

Update (6:45 p.m.) A Spring Valley student named Aaron Johnson who says he was in the class sent me this account via Twitter direct message:

The girl was asked by the teacher Mr. Long to leave the classroom and go to the discipline office, she ignored him, then an administrator came in and asked her if he needed to get the resource officer. She ignored him and then the officer came in. He asked if she was gonna go or if he had to make her go. Then he grabbed her and pulled her out of her desk and she fell on the ground with the desk still on her. He then threw her across the room and then got on top of her. Another student tried to stand up for her, which also led to her arrest.


snip...

School officials confirm the incident happened on Monday, but stopped short of releasing further details. According to Sheriff Leon Lott, the school resource officer was acting in response to a student who was refusing to leave class.
“The student was told she was under arrest for disturbing school and given instructions which she again refused,” Lott said. “The video then shows the student resisting and being arrested by the SRO.”

Just for good measure, here is a video of someone identified as Fields bench-pressing 600 pounds.

http://gawker.com/video-shows-officer-violently-slamming-high-school-girl-1738777141



I am so over this shit. I really am running out of words to use to express my anger.

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. Cop has been placed on administrative duty

Richland County, SC, police say School Resource Officer Benjamin Fields is placed on administrative duty after video appears to show him dragging student at Spring Valley High School - @Live5News

so apparently we now have cops called "Resource Officers" patrolling schools and mauling students....as a matter of policy.

[Logical]

5. Wow, that will teach him. I imagine his punishment will be a paid vacation. nt

[GGJohn]

9. You're exactly right,

he's on paid administrative leave, they'll "investigate" and then after a couple of weeks, declare the use of force was justified and he'll be reinstated.
Meantime, he gets a paid vacation compliments of the taxpayers.

[Logical]

12. True, and the lawsuit is paid by us also! nt

[malaise]

7. This is really scary

I remember school as a very pleasant part of my life. America has gone mad.

How is an adult male allowed to do that to a teenage girl

[Comrade Grumpy]

2. That looks like an assault to me.

This goon needs to be fired, at least.

[Kber]

3. So three grown men are rendered helpless to defuse one sullen teenaged girl

Don't get me wrong - sullen teenage girls are aweful (I have one for a daughter some days) but dealing with them is the business they have chosen.

Can't stand the heat, get out of the high school.

[A Little Weird]

6. There are DU'ers actually defending the cop's actions in the other thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=1243490

[ariesgem]

13. Wow!

I got nauseated reading that thread.

[BadgerKid]

8. And how does this incident end the cycle of violence?

Way excessive force.

[rurallib]

10. 600 freaking pounds - Any steroids there Officer Fields?

good Gawd I hope someone looks into that

Roid rage and a girl that must weigh @100 pounds?

[Mnemosyne]

11. Beyond disturbing. Hopefully she didn't have any severe injuries. Fucking pig. nt

[Stinky The Clown]

14. According to Comey, the fact this was recorded is why the US murder rate is up

Cops are all askeered that they might be caught on video beating the snot out of some innocent person.

[Snobblevitch]

15. The girl did not deserve this physical

altercation. However, if she was told to leave the class, she should have left.

There have recently been many fights among students in St. Paul, Minnesota schools recently. Teachers have attempted to intervene and have been assaulted. The school district (superintendent) has not backed up the teachers and has basically said they should let the students duke it out.

Edit to add:

I remember a fight between a student and teacher in my 8th grade math class. The kid must have had some issues. He was acting up, the teacher told him to report to the principal's office. The boy (he was a big kid, probably 6' and 180 lbs. I was probably 5'9" and 130#)

As the big kid was leaving, he punched the teacher in he gut. The teacher defended himself by pushing the kid away. There were torn shirts and buttons flying. The kid ended up on the floor. A couple of oher teachers heard what was going on and intervened. I never saw that kid in class again. I think the teacher moved on as well.

[ecstatic]

16. What gets me is how the teacher stood by quietly

A female student had to stand up for her, and was arrested for her bravery. Everyone knows cops are out of control, but I expect more from a male teacher.

[beevul]

17. The teachers comment...

“When I asked (their teacher) Mr. Long if he felt bad for what happened to her … his reply was ‘she should have cooperated.'”

http://heavy.com/news/2015/10/ben-fields-richland-county-south-carolina-sheriff-deputy-spring-valley-high-school-photo-football-coach-bodybuilder-cop-student-desk-video-complaints/

[Bettie]

28. He must be the same kind of teacher as this one

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/oct/23/girl-tosses-baby-carrot-faces-weapon-charges/

Yeah, a baby carrot, thrown in a hallway is assault with a deadly weapon. The cop would definitely have had to kill her for that, so I guess she's lucky she had no carrots on her.

[romanic]

18. This seems to be a lose-lose situation

No matter what could have been done about the uncooperative girl, force would have been taken to get her out if she wasn't going to get out of her seat.

[geek tragedy]

21. no. people need to eat, drink and use the restroom nt

[sub.theory]

23. No way

There is no way that level of force was required for a surly, uncooperative teen. If he couldn't have handled that situation better, he has no business being a cop - especially not in a school.

[LanternWaste]

25. it may seem that way to person's myopic enough to believe there are only two possibly options...

it may seem that way to person's myopic enough to believe there are only two possibly options.

[cwydro]

19. I couldn't get the video to play for me.

Just got a green screen.

[geek tragedy]

20. there are police officers, and then there are pigs nt

[sub.theory]

22. It's an epidemic

Even when cops know that everyone is watching them, they are still doing this shit, and it's because they know they can get away with it. This asshole already won one case against him that in light of this video seems completely believable that he was guilty. It's entirely possible he got away with it in the past and thought he could just keep doing it. Who knows how many times he's done this? It could be dozens or even more. We have to have body cameras and truly independent citizen oversight. This has to stop.

[Starry Messenger]

24. I think the teacher needs to go too.

It's 2/3rds of the way through the semester, and he's so insecure in the classroom he needs a paramilitary back-up for discipline?

[NCTraveler]

26. I can't imagine what he does to children when no one is watching.

I'd be willing to bet this disgusting display of battery and child abuse is only the tip of the iceberg in this monsters life.

[Runningdawg]

27. I don't have kids

but if I did they would be home-schooled. I'm not a fundy by any stretch of imagination but I would not put my child in that environment. I have a friend who works in a mental hospital, we were disusing this case last night. I asked him how he would have handled it. He said if the girl didn't want to move he would make sure she couldn't. He would handcuff her to the chair, then drag them both into the hallway. Contact the parents before doing ANYTHING else, then sit quietly, without touching or talking to the person until their parents show up.
Yeah, I know Monday morning quarterbacking. It may not be a perfect solution, but I think it would be better than what actually happened.

[Rex]

29. I have to wonder what kind of discipline the teacher enforces in that classroom.

So she didn't say anything and stayed silent in defiance? Time to call the parents. Sounds like there was need for a teacher/parents conference long, long before this happened.

[Rex]

30. Did anyone think of asking her nicely and saying please?

You cannot violently hurt someone, because they fail to follow your instructions. You can flunk them for failing to do their work, but the moment a student is touched and harmed...you lose and the student wins. IMO.