A Dallas police officer is currently under criminal review after punching a man in the face multiple times while working an off-duty job. The unnamed officer, who is usually assigned to SWAT, was already on administrative leave at the time of the incident due to two previous force complaints.
Video circulating on the internet shows a street brawl between a large group of people outside the Off the Cuff Bar in Deep Ellum. While the police attempt to get the situation under control, a man in a white shirt approaches, and the officer in question can be heard telling him to get back. “Back up, back up, back your ass up,” the officer tells the man while pushing him away. “Get off the [expletive] street.” At this point, the video pans away and then back in time to see the off-duty officer straddle the man in the white shirt and punch him in the head multiple times.
Two other officers intervened and pulled the off-duty officer off of the man while several members of the crowd can be heard complaining about the man’s treatment. Since June of 2020, the Dallas Police Department has been operating under a general order that requires officers to “either stop or attempt to stop another employee when force is being inappropriately applied or is no longer required.” In a press release, Chief Eddie Garcia has said he would “like to commend those officers who recognized their duty to intervene in this incident and deescalated the situation.”