Video shows deputy slamming student accused of stealing candy bar
Attorneys for a high school student in Covington, Georgia, are accusing sheriff's deputies of using excessive force on their client by body slamming him to the ground for stealing candy from a school vending machine. Asah Glenn, the 14-year-old student, said he feared for his life during the alleged incident.
The Newton County Sheriff's Office said deputies initially thought they were responding to a fight but determined the students were stealing snacks from the vending machine. The sheriff's office said one of its deputies has been reassigned pending results of an investigation into his actions.
Glenn said a fellow student at Alcovy High School had opened the vending machine Thursday and a group of students rushed to steal candy. Glenn admitted that he also ran to the machine — and that's when he says he was grabbed by deputies and a coach at the school.
"It was a blur. I was scared for my life and I didn't know what was going on," Glenn told CBS affiliate WGCL. "I ran over there, grabbed a Snickers, turned around, coach grabbed me, and it went from there."
Video shot by a bystander shows one of the deputies picking Glenn up and slamming him onto the ground. Glenn's attorneys provided the video to CBS News.
Glenn, who was suspended from school for three days, said his rib was hurt and both of his knees were scraped. He and two other students face charges including theft and disorderly conduct.
The teen's attorney, Mawuli Davis, said the coach and two deputies used excessive force during the incident.
"They're choking him and they run him into the wall, lift him up, and you can see them try to body slam him to the ground. His hands are up the whole time," Davis said. "He's 125, 130 pounds max and these are grown men. It was traumatizing for him."
