Former Suburban Deputy Police Chief Guilty of Civil Rights Violation in 2011 Beating of Bar-goer

The former deputy police chief of Midlothian could serve up to 10 years in prison, after jurors found him guilty of using excessive force in a 2011 beating of a bar-goer.

Steve Zamiar, 47, used his steel baton to repeatedly strike 31-year-old James Snyder in the back of the head following “Black Wednesday” drinking outside Durbin’s bar in 2011. It took a federal jury two days to hand over the guilty verdict Friday morning, Tribune Media reports.

In the wake of several recent, heavily reported police brutality cases, U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman questioned jurors in-depth about their opinions on police brutality.

Zamiar purported Snyder assumed a “fighting stance” and had thrown a punch, when Zamiar him in an act of self-defense. In a key testimony, Sgt. Edmond Olmos spoke up against his superior officer, stating that the attack on Snyder was unprovoked.

Zamiar also faces a second federal criminal charge, in an accusation of an unprovoked 2010 attack on a detainee, Tribune Media reports. Snyder has also filed a civil lawsuit against Zamiar. He was fired by Midlothian last year.

Read more from Tribune Media, via CBS Local.