After arriving to the scene of a family disturbance in San Antonio, Texas, in early December, Detective Scott Marshall of the city’s police department allegedly punched a woman around 10 times. She was already on the ground.
Now, he is on a 30-day unpaid suspension, according to San Antonio Police Department records.
According to KSAT, Marshall is an 11-year veteran of the department. Before he allegedly began pummeling her, Marshall was attempting to arrest the woman – described as a “belligerent female” by police – for assault.
“As Detective Marshall was punching the woman he also yelled ‘Don’t f***ing hit me; you don’t f***ing hit me b****,’ according to the disciplinary paperwork signed by Marshall,” said the outlet.
After the alleged punching incident, the woman was eventually placed in handcuffs and taken to jail. Marshall was not charged with any crime, said KSAT.
However, his actions violate the San Antonio Police Department, the City of San Antonio Fire Fighters’ and Police Officers’ Civil Service Commission Rules. His suspension was approved May 15 – it startd June 3 and runs through July 2.
Per police paperwork, Marshall “used an unreasonable and/or unnecessary amount of force while taking the female suspect into custody.”
“Excessive force refers to force in excess of what a police officer reasonably believes is necessary,” according to Cornell Law School. “A police officer may be held liable for using excessive force in an arrest, an investigatory stop, or other seizures. A police officer may also be liable for not preventing another police officer from using excessive force.”
In recent years, use of excessive force by police officers has been in the headlines, especially the George Floyd case. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for eight minutes, until the unarmed Black man died. That case also highlighted racial injustice concerns and kicked off a protest movement in 2020.
“KSAT said it has requested suspension records for multiple officers with the San Antonio department that were released Thursday after months of delay.
Officials have not provided a reason for the lengthy delay in releasing the paperwork publicly,” said the outlet.
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