Two Kansas City police officers were arrested after footage showed them slamming Brianna Hill’s head into a sidewalk during an arrest last year, according to KSHB Kansas City. Hill, who is a transgender woman, went by several other aliases, including Breona, Bebe, and Briya.
On Friday, a grand jury in Missouri handed down the indictment of Matthew Brummett, 37, and Charles Prichard, 47, on misdemeanor fourth-degree assault charges per Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker.
The incident happened on May 24 of last year, outside a beauty supply store, after the woman had a disagreement with someone inside the store. Both Hill and the store’s owners called 911, and the owners asked for Hill to be removed. According to the officers, Hill was resisting, and officers took her to the ground.
Cellphone footage of the incident was taken by a bystander outside the beauty supply store and showed the officers kneeing the woman in the face, torso, and ribs while she is handcuffed. The officers maintain that Hill beat her own head into the ground and that they prevented her from causing herself more harm by restraining her.
She was ticketed for trespassing, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Peters Baker expressed her disappointment and frustration in the case, saying in a statement that her office presented the case before the grand jury after KCPD investigators declined to provide a probable cause statement and determined the officers did nothing wrong.
It was announced Friday that both officers have been placed on administrative leave. They are scheduled to appear in court in August, and the charges carry a sentence of up to a year in jail.
A statement was issued on behalf of Brummett and Prichard through the police union Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 99 stating:
“Officers Matthew Brummett and Charles Prichard were made aware of the misdemeanor charges late today related to their arrest of Brianna Hill on May 24, 2019. Both officers have fully cooperated with the Department during the entire investigation. They maintain that the force they used was reasonable under the totality of the circumstances. They vehemently dispute the basis of these charges and believe they will be ultimately exonerated in court.”
Brianna Hill was shot and killed in a separate incident in October. Someone has been charged for her death.
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