NJ Cop Hit Woman In Face With Flashlight, Under Investigation: VIDEO

NEW JERSEY - An Asbury Park Police Department officer is under investigation after a video depicting him striking a woman with a flashlight surfaced.

A spokesperson from the local police department confirmed to Patch that a June 2021 incident regarding Officer Stephen Love has been under investigation with the department’s internal investigation unit “due to a video of the incident being provided to the department.”

The initial investigation started shortly after the incident, the spokesperson confirmed. The case was forwarded and reviewed by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, with the officer conduct portion returned to the Asbury Park Police Department in January 2022. The Asbury Park Police Department internal investigation is still active.

In a video first reported by News12, Love can be seen striking a man, then a woman in the face with a flashlight. After being struck, the woman collapses to the ground, while the man runs away and Love chases after him.

The encounter was recorded on June 19, 2021, at the intersection of Mattison Avenue and Main Street around 2 a.m. as Love was responding to a disturbance call near Johnny Macs, News12 reported.

The woman struck was identified by News12 as Felicia Clay, who was hospitalized and jailed for three days. She was charged with aggravated assault on an officer, News12 reported. The man in the video was identified as Charles Bennett, per the outlet, who pleaded guilty to drug possession and thus had his assault charge dropped.

The outlet reports that, in a police report, Love claims Bennett was about to punch the officer as he attempted to make an arrest. Love also reported that Clay pushed on his back, causing him to swing back in self-defense.

Officer Love is still on the force as of Tuesday, a spokesperson for the police department confirmed.