Video: US Cop Throws Woman On Ground, Uses Pepper Spray On Her Outside Grocery Store

An investigation is underway after shocking footage of a Los Angeles County deputy throwing a woman on the ground and using pepper spray on her went viral on social media. The incident took place on June 24 outside the WinCo grocery store in Lancaster, as per a report in Fox News. According to the department, the police officers were apprehending a man and woman who were accused of theft inside the store.

In the video, a police officer can be seen placing handcuffs on a man while a woman is seen recording the entire turn of events. Later, a cop proceeds towards the woman, grabs her and throws her on the ground. Later, he even uses pepper spray on her face. The woman yells and pleads to the deputy not to touch her before he slams her. "Don't slam her down like that," the detained man tells the police in the clip, adding that the woman has cancer.

This is Lancaster, California.

A Los Angeles county sheriffs deputy throws a Black woman to the ground and brutalized her for filming them arresting her husband.

Filming the police is not illegal.

This is brutality.

Arrest this pig. pic.twitter.com/BKg9dnZX7M

— Bishop Talbert Swan (@TalbertSwan) July 4, 2023

Another person recording the incident screams at the officer to stop as he struggles to restrain the woman on the ground. However, it remains unclear if the cop's knee was on her neck or back.

Lisa Michelle Garrett, the person who recorded the video, claims to have worked in security in the past, as per Fox News. As soon as she noticed many loss-prevention officers leading the man and woman out of the supermarket, she began recording the whole incident. Ms Garrett told the outlet that the woman in the video was saying, "I can't breathe."

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department released a statement on the incident and said that an investigation is ongoing. "The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has opened an investigation into this incident. While the Department does not make statements related to ongoing investigations, Sheriff Luna has made it clear that he expects Department personnel to treat all members of the public with dignity and respect, and that personnel who do not uphold our training standards will be held accountable. In the interest of transparency with our community, the Sheriff's Department is releasing body-worn camera video from the incident."

The identities of the officers in the video have not yet been made public, but the department has stated that both have been removed from field duty while the inquiry is on.