Ohio Cop Caught on Video Choking EMT in Front of Shocked Crowd

A video has made the rounds on social media, showing a Portsmouth Ohio police officer choking an emergency medical worker at the scene of a bar fight. The cell phone video has caused a wave of outrage, as it highlights why people have come to view the police as bullies. The police are quick to defend their officer, stating that the video is “heavily edited” and doesn’t tell the whole story. However, it’s difficult to imagine what could have transpired to bring the officer to commit an aggravated assault against a fellow public servant.

There is no legal police maneuver that allows for the grabbing of the neck or throat. This video depicts a felony battery being committed against someone as dedicated to public service as the officer himself. This is a crime, to which there should only be one course of action. The officer, who has yet to be identified, had responded to a bar fight, which resulted in one male subject being knocked unconscious. He had been struck on the head and had sustained other minor injuries. According to witnesses, when he woke, he was startled and reacted as any person who had been knocked unconscious would, only to find themselves covered in blood and surrounded by police and EMTs.

One witness, Trevor Conley told the local media, “He just woke up from being knocked out, and he’s got guys all around him grabbing a hold of him. You’re going to freak out.”

It was at this time the officer used a Taser on the male subject. Witnesses stated that the unnamed medical technician attempted to intervene. “When the EMT was telling him you can’t do that, you can’t do that, he’s got head trauma, he grabbed him up here,” stated another witness, identified as Chad Bennett, who signaled that the EMT had been choked.

The video shows the cop hold the EMT by the throat and backing him up against a car. To be clear, this is not some lawful police hold under any circumstances, regardless of whether the one being choked is an EMT. Once the cop is done assaulting his victim, he turns toward the crowd who he now realizes recorded the event. He then becomes extremely aggressive and yells at the crowd to disperse.

Despite what our own eyes tell us, the police chief and the head of the paramedic service involved would like us to believe otherwise. Both have come out jointly stating that “it was a crazy situation” and despite clear violations of the law and police ethics, no further action will be taken, and both sides “have moved on.” This is how police get away with murder. They have an army of accomplices waiting to cover their every action, even when the truth is obvious to everyone except for them.

UPDATE: Before publishing, new bodycam video was released, showing the HERO EMT attempting to intervene. The body cam footage shows an entirely new perspective that backs up the EMT’s actions.

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