A Texas deputy seen in a video punching a teenager outside a convenience store was fired for violating several department policies, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office announced.
Former Deputy Bert Dillow was initially placed on administrative duty after he was accused of punching and cursing at the teen during a March 26 incident. A video of the altercation was posted last week on the Facebook page of the immigrant civil rights group, FIEL Houston.
In the footage, Dillow asks the teen, identified by KTRK-TV as high school sophomore Carlos Rodriguez, for his identification. After Rodriguez hands it over, Dillow motions for him to come closer.
Rodriguez walks toward Dillow and then appears to take a step away from him.
“Don’t run from me, boy. I’ll beat your f—— a– right here,” Dillow says as he grabs Rodriguez by the shirt. “Turn around and put your hands behind your back before I beat the s— out of you.”
“Don’t be f—— stupid,” Dillow yells.
When Rodriguez appears to pull his hand away, Dillow punches him in the face, causing the teen to fall to the ground. Dillow appears to punch Rodriguez several more times before handcuffing him.
“All I was gonna do is talk to you, but now you’re f—–,” Dillow says.
The sheriff’s office launched an investigation into the incident on March 29, a press release stated. Dillow was fired Wednesday after it was determined that he violated several of the department’s policies including use of force. He had been with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office since September 2018, the department’s press release said.
News of Dillow’s firing came the same day the sheriff’s office announced that another deputy, Eric D. Sanchez, was terminated for also violating department policies.
Sanchez’s firing stems from a February incident in which he was seen on video threatening to kill a driver and pulling out his gun, according to KTRK-TV.
The driver, George Dickerson, told the outlet that he had merged onto a freeway and got caught in a funeral procession. Dickerson said he moved into another lane that had two motorcycle officers.
“I really just wanted to get in front of that car, so I did that,” Dickerson said. “The cop in the front slowed down, so I couldn’t go around.”
Dickerson said the officer behind him drove up and told him to stop and then got back behind Dickerson’s vehicle. Before he could stop, Dickerson said the officer in front slammed on the brakes. So Dickerson hit his brakes, as well as the officer behind him.
Dickerson’s co-worker, who was also in the car, began filming as Sanchez approached their vehicle. In the footage, Sanchez is heard saying, “I’ll f—— kill you.” The video also shows the deputy with his gun drawn.
Like Dillow, Sanchez was initially placed on administrative duty. He was fired on April 8 for violating several policies including use of a firearm and traffic enforcement, the sheriff’s office press release states. He had been with the department since August 2016.
Both cases are being sent to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office to determine if criminal charges are appropriate.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
