San Antonio School District Officer Joshua Kehm was caught on video body-slamming a 12-year-old girl to the ground who he believed was about to get in a physical altercation with another student. He picked up 12-year-old Janissa Valdez, using full force to throw her face first into the brick walkway. She appeared to lose consciousness. The video (seen below) quickly gained nationwide attention and Officer Kehm was suspended (with pay!) pending investigation.
That suspension didn’t last long. He’s officially been terminated by the school district:
While San Antonio ISD's investigation continues into an incident that occurred at Rhodes Middle School on March 29, 2016, the District has made the decision to terminate the employment of Officer Joshua Kehm, effective immediately.
“As educators, it is our responsibility to provide a safe environment for all of our students,” said SAISD Superintendent Pedro Martinez. “We understand that situations can sometimes escalate to the point of requiring a physical response; however, in this situation we believe that the extent of the response was absolutely unwarranted. Additionally, the officer’s report was inconsistent with the video and it was also delayed, which is not in accordance with the general operating procedures of the police department. We want to be clear that we will not tolerate this behavior.” Martinez said
Watch the wholly inappropriate use of force below:
Janissa Valdez