Lawyer alleges excessive force in Fairfield officer beating of high school student

A Fairfield high school student was struck by a police officer during an encounter involving a school resource officer and an attempt to break up a student fight. A civil rights attorney representing the 16-year-old said the officer’s use of force violated department training. The family called for accountability and disputed statements made by the department and school about what led to the confrontation. The attorney said the student was not armed, no screwdriver was in his backpack, and he was not involved in the original fight police were responding to. Fairfield police said the incident occurred last Wednesday and described the arrest as following a violent altercation, including claims that the officer used “distraction strikes” to gain compliance.

"Any rational view of the video shows that the officer violated her training. Video of the incident shows Williams being hit during an encounter with police. Williams' mother said she is concerned about how her son has been portrayed following the incident, and is calling for accountability. She said Maurice is not the person being depicted and emphasized that he is 16 years old and had no prior interactions with law enforcement."

"The department and the school appears to have issued, made statements about Maurice that were untrue. He was not armed. There was no screwdriver in his backpack. None of that is true. He was not actually involved in the original fight that the police were responding to. Nisenbaum also disputed accounts of what led up to the confrontation, while the family sought accountability after the incident."

"Fairfield police said the incident happened last Wednesday when Officer Bianca Camacho and a school resource officer attempted to break up a student fight. Williams was arrested following what police described as a violent altercation. On social media, the police department said Camacho used "distraction strikes" to gain compliance. Civil rights attorney Melissa Nold criticized that description and said the incident raises concerns about police conduct."

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