Officer Resigns After Punching Man On Street: Baltimore Police

BALTIMORE, MD — The officer captured on video punching a man and throwing him to the ground in Baltimore over the weekend has resigned, officials said. Interim Commissioner Gary Tuggle accepted the resignation from the policeman, according to a statement the Baltimore Police Department issued Sunday night.

"The officer involved in yesterday’s incident is no longer with the Baltimore Police Department," the statement said. "Interim Commissioner Tuggle has accepted his resignation. The second officer remains on administrative duties. This remains an active criminal investigation."

Based on the initial investigation, authorities said two officers were working at 11:45 a.m. on Saturday in the 2500 block of Monument Street when they encountered someone who was familiar to one of the officers. When they approached him again to get his contact information and he would not give his identification, authorities said the situation escalated.

The officer who had approached him punched the man multiple times, threw him to the ground and detained him, according to the video.

"I'm deeply disturbed by the video that surfaced online earlier today," Tuggle said in a statement Saturday afternoon, announcing the officer had been suspended. "I have zero tolerance for behavior like I witnessed on the video today. Officers have a responsibility and duty to control their emotions in the most stressful of situations."

Later Tuggle said a second officer seen on the video had been placed on administrative duties.

The man who was injured was provided with medical treatment, and he was not charged, police reported.

RELATED: Baltimore Officer Suspended After Throwing Punches

Warren Brown, the attorney representing the man who was attacked, said at a press conference on Monday afternoon that his client — Dashawn McGrier, 26 — sustained injuries to his jaw, nose, eye socket and ribs.

"It’s like as if, you know, you got tackled by...Ray Lewis or something," Brown said of the attack. "You’re just a little guy, and you can’t defend yourself."

McGrier is 6 feet tall and 170 pounds, according to online court records.

"This was bullying,” Brown said, explaining that the officer knew his client and that he would not fight back.

The attorney identified the assailant as Officer Arthur Williams, who had arrested McGrier in June.

In that case, Brown said as the officer was issuing a marijuana citation to a woman who did not understand what that meant, his client intervened to explain; and in response, the officer redirected his attention to and arrested McGrier.

As a result of the altercation Saturday, he said McGrier remains in the hospital and is expected to be released before the end of the day.

"This was a cowardly act by Williams," Brown said, stating while there is the potential for a lawsuit: "We hope that we don’t even have to get to that, quite frankly."

The ACLU has condemned the officer's actions.

In addition, the NAACP issued a statement Monday saying the second officer should lose his job, and both officers involved in the incident should be prosecuted, WBAL reported.

We cannot tolerate police brutality. We need community oversight of the Baltimore Police Department NOW.

The video of Dashawn McGrier being brutalized by a Baltimore Police officer shows unconstitutional police action. #Baltimorepolice #PoliceBrutality #policereform
— ACLU of Maryland (@ACLU_MD) August 13, 2018

The Baltimore Police Department is under federal scrutiny after signing a consent decree committing to police reform. The legally binding document was the result of a federal probe following the 2015 riots that found the department repeatedly violated people's constitutional rights.

Despite attempts to mend relationships with the community, there have been setbacks.

In recent months, multiple officers were convicted in a racketeering scheme for using their power to rob and falsely charge citizens.

The unsolved murder of a homicide detective in November 2017, the firing of previous Police Commissioner Kevin Davis in January and resignation of Police Commissioner Darryl DeSousa in May have added to turbulence in the department.

Warning: The video may be disturbing and contains profanity.

Still picture from WMAR/YouTube.