The white South Carolina high school resource officer seen on video this week flipping a black female student out of her desk and throwing her across a classroom will be relieved of duty, NBC News reported Wednesday.
Videos posted online of Richland County Senior Deputy Ben Fields’ confrontation with the Spring Valley High School student sparked a firestorm on social media. Fields was put on administrative leave pending a full investigation by local and federal authorities.
Fields allegedly has a record of aggressive arrests, the Guardian reported. A man named Carlos Martin sued Fields in federal court for allegedly pepper spraying him and using force with his wife after pulling the couple over for playing loud music, court records show.
Todd Rutherford, an attorney representing the teen, said she received multiple injuries during the arrest on ABC’s “Good Morning America” Wednesday morning, AP reported.
“She now has a cast on her arm, she has neck and back injuries. She has a Band-Aid on her forehead where she suffered rug burn on her forehead,” Rutherford said.
Images from video taken by a Spring Valley High School student show Senior Deputy Ben Fields trying to forcibly remove a student from her chair after she refused to leave her high school math class. (AP Photo)
The Justice Department announced Tuesday it would open a civil rights investigation into the incident.
The high school student involved in the confrontation was arrested and charged with disturbing school. Another female student was also charged. Neither have been identified.
This story has been updated.
