Can you think of any reason that an unarmed 14-year-old girl should be punched repeatedly by the police? As reported by CBS News, the Coral Springs Police Department thinks there's a good reason for the incident, which went down on October 18. The assault took place outside of Coral Square Mall, where police were responding to a report of teens harassing shoppers. A now viral video of the beating was uploaded online after the assault took place. In the short clip, two police officers can be seen holding a young girl down while one punches her in the ribs. The officer extends his arm back for improved force before he drives the second punch into the girl's side.
The Coral Springs Police Department released a statement following the assault, defending the officer's actions. Their statement tells the tale of "unruly teens" who pushed a five-year-old and continued to cause mayhem all over the mall. After the teens terrorized the shopping center, police were called and they met with mall security. The team of authorities banned the teens from the mall, but officers received another call before leaving about the same group. This time, officers arrested one of the teens, which set the young girl in the video off. The police department claims she, "began cursing, attempting to incite other teens." Once officers tried to arrest her, she fought back, prompting them to force her to the ground. At that point, the department's statement tries to claim the officer punched the 14-year-old girl to get her to unclench her fists so she could be arrested. The video shows the girl laying on her fists though. The narrative sounds suspicious, and the fact two grown police officers couldn't handcuff a teenage girl without punching her is pitiful, to say the least. The officer in question is not being investigated at the moment.