An off-duty Wichita officer, who was working security at Roller City on New Year's Eve will not be facing charges from an altercation with a teenage boy.
Officials say a teenage girl had been told to leave, but refused and fought with one of the security officers. The girl's boyfriend jumped in and punched an officer in the back of the head. That officer fought back striking the teen and pushing him against the wall and pepper spraying him.
Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett says he could not prove that to be an unreasonable action by the officer. "You don't have the right to punch a cop in the back of the head," Bennett said. "He has the right to defend himself. For me to charge him, I would have to be able to establish that what he did was not reasonable, I cannot do that." Bennett continued.
The officer has been on administrative duties since the incident, and is now waiting the conclusion of in internal ingestion to determine if he followed department policy.
While neither officer will face charges, Bennett says he will be working with the teen regarding the consequences of his actions.