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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Sam Elliott

Police officer quits after footage shows him slamming girl, 11, into wall

This is the moment an experienced police officer wrestled an 11-year-old girl before slamming her against a wall and into the ground.

Zachary Christensen accused her of being "disruptive" at school - and pinned the child to the pavement.

He resigned after officers watched his body cam footage back and it was released to the public.

The sixth-grader is seen crying after being tackled and shoved up against a brick wall in Farmington, New Mexico.

The 77-minute video came to light after he accused her of taking extra milk and standing up on a school bus.

The heavy-handed cop slammed the child to the ground (KRQE)

Grabbing her backpack, he shouted: “You’re done” six times and tried to force the unnamed student’s arms behind her back.

The girl, wearing a pink jumper, responded: “Leave me alone,” before yelling “I want to go home,” to try and end the ordeal.

“You don’t get that option!” heavy-handed Christensen replied.

She screamed for him to let her go but refused (KRQE)

He accused her of resisting arrest, warning her “It’s all on that camera right there.”

Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe saw the footage and acted. He called the incident a police "failure".

“Like many of you, I was shocked and angry when I watched this video,” he said in a statement.

“We value our relationship with our community and will continue to work hard to maintain the public’s confidence in our department.

Zachary Christensen resigned soon after the incident (KRQE)

“Students should always feel safe in schools. I have called for an expedited investigation and will work directly with all proper authorities involved in this regrettable tragedy,”

The department also reassigned and demoted Christensen’s supervisor.

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