An incident involving a Belvidere police officer punching a suspect was caught on camera on Thursday. It happened after an attempted traffic stop on State Street near Aldi when a suspect tried to run from the officer, according to WREX.

In the video, the officer strikes the suspect in the face followed by telling the suspect to put their hands behind their back. The footage in the video does not reveal what happened before what was caught on camera. Deputy Chief Shane Woody told WREX Belvidere Police do have the right to punch a suspect if needed but did not reveal the names of the officer or suspect or if there was a misuse of force.

In his interview with WREX (after they showed him the video) Deputy Woody stressed the importance of reviewing all evidence before issuing a statement about the incident and parties involved.

"This is just one piece of the puzzle. I'll be looking at all the information I can gather including any witnesses and additional video, the officer's report and statements.

 

Ultimately once I have as much information as I can get, we'll make a determination as to whether the use of force was reasonable within policy and state statute."

All parties are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

[H/T WREX]


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