LA Cop Gets 3 Years for Excessive Force

Mary O’Callaghan, an officer with the LAPD, was sentenced to 36 months in jail Thursday for using excessive force on a 35-year-old woman. Dash-cam footage from multiple cop cars showed how O’Callaghan “jabbed at [Alesia] Thomas’ throat with an open hand and threated to kick her in the crotch,” before striking Thomas with her boot, according to the Los Angeles Times. The mother lost consciousness minutes later and eventually died, though O’Callaghan was not charged in connection with her death, which medical examiners said was likely induced by cocaine. The ruling comes amid a nationwide debate over police officers’ use of force.