Rhode Island police officers have been accused of beating a woman in protest of an abortion in connection with a demonstration at the State Capitol on Friday.
In a news release Saturday evening, state police said Providence patrolman Jean Lugo, 35, was charged with simple assault and chaotic behavior.
Progressive Rhode Island seeking a Democratic nomination for the State SenateJennifer Luke, chairman of the political co-operative, said he was beaten at least twice by Lugo. rice field. He was running for a GOP nomination in the same seat at the time. Providence police said earlier Saturday that Lugo had been suspended from his work on salary while waiting for an investigation, and Lugo then ended his campaign.
Read more: Defenders and opponents of abortion seek the next step after the Roe v. Wade case is overthrown. More
The story continues under the ad
Friday's protest outside Providence's Rhode Island State House was held by the U.S. Supreme Court on the same day. It was in response to a decision that overturned the announcedRoe v. Wade case. The 1973 decision that provided the constitutional right to abortion. A video of the event posted online shows the physical changes in protests just before a woman who looks like Roke is seen being beaten. The video does not show what happened in advance between Lugo and Rourke.
On a phone call to the Associated Press on Saturday, Roke had another physical quarrel when he tried to escort a rebel who agreed to leave the premises, during which she had multiple The number of times the face was beaten. She confirmed that she had accused Lugo.
Trend Story
According to state police, Lugo crouched on Saturday, was charged in front of a justice of the peace, and was subsequently released. He will appear in court again on July 8th. Lugo did not respond to requests for comment on Saturday and Sunday, but he told The Boston Globe before the accusation was announced that he "intervened to protect someone a group of agitators were attacking." I did.
The story continues below the ad
Lugo also told The Providence Journal that he "will not deny" Punch's allegations. Everything happened very quickly. "
Rourke told AP that he had never interacted with Lugo and was unaware that he would protest.
"It's a shame he chose to use violence this way. As a police officer, he is trained to escalate. He didn't do anything trained. "She said.
Read more: After the Roe v. Wade incident, the state moves swiftly to ban abortion. Access will be as follows
Rourke sought medical care and had a CT scan on Saturday afternoon. She said it was okay, but there was a lot of tenderness on her face and a sound in her ears.
Two others were also charged after the events on Friday became temporarily violent. One of the two, Nicholas Morel of Warwick, said in a Sunday message that he was 30 years old instead of 31 as police said, "I was arrested for standing there." rice field.
Others arrested did not respond to social media messages asking for comment on Sunday.
© 2022 TheCanadian Press
