Denver cop working nightclub security kicks handcuffed man unconscious
Denver CO March 13 2019 An off-duty Denver police officer who knocked a handcuffed man unconscious with a flying knee kick while working security at a bar will not be booted off the force.
Shocking CCTV footage shows police corporal Michael Oestmann attacking Kevin Watson after handcuffing him to a chair in the basement of Jackson’s in downtown Denver, Colorado.
In the clip, Watson can be heard shouting expletives at Oestmann, 38, for several minutes, before spitting towards his face.
Oestmann leaps into action, hitting him in the face with his knee, which sends his head flying backwards into the metal lockers behind him.
He then delivers a swift punch to the face, knocking Watson out cold, before grabbing his head and holding it up.
“’You will not spit on me again, do you understand me?’
Later on in the clip, Oestmann himself admitted that ‘I may have gotten a little violent there’. Watson was handcuffed to the chair after an alleged fight in the bar.
Denver police released footage of the incident, which took place on April 4 last year, after he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor menacing as part of a plea deal, reports WAFB.
He will have a deferred sentence and see no jail time, and will have to attend anger management classes.
The incident, which sent Watson to hospital with cuts on his face, will be removed from his record if he complies with court orders.
Oestmann’s actions are also being investigated internally by Denver police, and he is currently on desk duty.
Cop Watch, a watchdog group, said the incident would be bad for relations between the police and the public.
He told WAFB: ‘We don’t want our children to be spitting on officers. But at the same time, we expect our children to not be hurt or be brutalized by anyone.’
