A New Jersey police officer was suspended from the force for hitting a 13-year-old girl in the head during an arrest, officials said.
Body-camera footage released Friday shows Gloucester County Township police officer John Flinn, 27, socking the girl twice in the head as he handcuffs her.
The girl was face-down with both arms pulled behind her back when the blows were delivered, and could be heard crying out afterward.
Authorities didn’t say why the cops were called when they encountered the teen last month, but that the girl had complied with their instructions and allowed Flinn to handcuff her.
After being hit, the girl was taken to the hospital for evaluation. She was not charged with a crime, police said.
Flinn — a cop since 2015 — was charged with simple assault and was suspended from the force for the March 8 incident, the Camden County prosecutor announced Friday. His next court date is April 17.
“I am grateful of the relationship that our officers have built with the community, and I am very confident that this incident will in no way damage that relationship,” Gloucester Township Police Chief Harry Earle said in a statement Saturday.