Araweelo News Network
This image grab shows a female student laying on the ground after being body slammed by a cop in a North Carolina high school.
North Carolina(ANN)-A new video showing a US police officer violently slamming an African American female student to the ground in the state of North Carolina has sparked outrage.
The short clip, which went viral on Tuesday, shows a school resource officer at Rolesville high school lifting a young girl and slamming her to the ground.
He then takes the student out of the camera’s view as enraged students nearby shout at him.
Police and school officials did not immediately respond to media requests for more clarification.
The officer was identified by local newspaper the News and Observer as Ruben De Los Santos. Santos was on administrative leave, according to the daily.
Wake County school officials responded to the video on Twitter, saying they were working with police investigators.
The footage drew parallel to a police officer’s violent encounter with a student last year, when the San Antonio cop body slammed a 12-year-old female student on the concrete floor and knocked her unconscious.
The new footage stoked concerns about the unnecessary use of violent tactics by police officers and drew angry reactions on social media.
“Very disturbing video. Students should never be treated this way,” the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina said in a tweet.
It is not yet clear what initiated the violent encounter but a separate footage showed signs of an altercation between a group of students prior to the incident.
That footage shows several adults trying to end the brawl before the officer intervenes.
In late November, a large number of demonstrators in Charlotte, North Carolina, held rallies after the city decided to not charge an officer in the shooting death of an African-American man. The protests lasted until early December.