KNBC TV
Several San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies were caught on camera Thursday brutally beating a suspect even after he was handcuffed. A news helicopter captured as many as nine deputies kicking and punching 30-year-old Francis Pusok after after he fell off a horse at the end of a three-hour chase through the desert. Police beat Pusok for two minutes, kicking him in the head, torso, and groin. Pusok’s lawyer said the beating is “far worse than Rodney King” and that his client has sustained injuries.
A chase began after police tried to serve Pusok with a search warrant for suspicion of identity theft. A criminal investigation has been launched at the request of the county’s sheriff-coroner, John McMahon, who called the video “disturbing.” Pusok’s lawyer wants the deputies terminated and charged criminally.