A community in California is demanding the resignation of a female police officer following the release of bodycam footage that seemingly captures her violently assaulting a high school student.
Officer Bianca Camacho, affiliated with the Fairfield Police Department, has been reassigned following allegations that she assaulted 16-year-old Maurice Williams during an attempt to handcuff him on May 20. This incident has sparked outrage among residents.
The situation unfolded at Fairfield High School when Camacho was called in to support school resource officer James Lewis, who was responding to a brawl that had erupted among students.
Footage from the scene shows several students appearing to surge toward Officer Lewis, leading Officer Camacho to intervene by pinning Williams to the ground.
During this confrontation, Camacho is seen gripping Williams by the hair and delivering at least five open-handed strikes to his face while holding his head down, according to the video.
The officer can be heard shouting, “Give me your f**king hands,” at the student repeatedly, as the footage reveals.
Lewis can then be heard gently telling her: ‘Stop, stop, stop.’
The two then worked together to handcuff Williams, who was lying still on his stomach.
Community members are calling for the resignation of Officer Bianca Camacho, of the Fairfield Police Department. Camacho previously worked for the Vallejo Police Department
On May 20, she was seen on bodycam footage using several strikes against Maurice Williams, 16, to get him to comply
She was seen holding him down by his hair. His family said he suffered from ‘dizzy spells’ afterward
‘I want to clarify that the student was not handcuffed during the incident,’ Chief Dan Marshall said in a statement.
‘The officer delivered several strikes to gain compliance and gain access to his hands so he could be handcuffed. Once the assisting officer was able to reposition, both officers were able to place the young man into handcuffs.’
The police department said several students got into a physical altercation, including one teen who fought Lewis. Two backpacks were confiscated after Lewis noticed one student reaching inside a backpack and feared a weapon was inside.
One of the students was escorted to the office, while Lewis came back for Williams, who police said acted aggressively and resisted arrest, which caused Camacho to issue ‘distraction’ strikes against him after he covered his face to avoid being handcuffed.
‘The officer tried again to pull his arm behind his back but was still not able to overcome his resistance. The officer applied additional distraction strikes, which resulted in the second student complying and placing his hands behind his back,’ police said.
The first student eventually left the office and came back to the commotion. He was arrested as well, police said.
Screwdrivers were found in the backpacks, Fairfield Police said.
Marshall also announced an independent investigation has been launched and that Camacho has been ‘administratively reassigned in the department as we navigate this emotional and challenging time.’
Last year, Myah Hamilton, who was 18 at the time, was violently arrested by Camacho. ‘The same thing that happened to that poor boy was pretty much what happened to me,’ Hamilton said
Camacho allegedly dragged Hamilton out of her vehicle by force, cellphone footage showed
With the help of another female officer, they were able to get Hamilton out of her vehicle
‘We will carefully evaluate the totality of the investigation’s findings, for discipline, additional training, opportunities for improvements, or policy changes within the department,’ Marshall said.
‘Additionally, we are working alongside the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District and community leaders to organize a community meeting focused on both this incident and the broader issue of the climate and culture on our high school campuses.’
Williams’s family said the student has experienced ‘dizzy spells’ and headaches since the attack, they said at a press conference.
Will Bible, a campus monitor, said Lewis was filling in for the normal officer, who was off on paternity leave, and that he had called the Fairfield Police Department for backup.
He also said Williams and the other boy had a verbal dispute.
Since the incident, calls for her resignation have been rampant in the Fairfield community.
‘It’s disgusting how she was just verbally and physically assaulting a minor,’ one person wrote under the police video. ‘She needs to be fired, as well as, anyone who behaves like this.’
‘He is 16, fire her!’ another wrote.
‘Fire her IMMEDIATELY,’ a third wrote.
‘It’s not okay, that should have never happened,’ Hamilton said of Camacho’s actions
In a statement, Fairfield Police Department said: ‘The department is aware of a video circulating online of a Fairfield Police Officer using force against a student in this incident. The department is committed to transparency in this incident.
‘Body camera videos from two officers have been released to provide context to the situation.’
But further calls for Camacho’s resignation came after it was revealed Camacho was involved in a case of excessive force a year ago against 18-year-old Myah Hamilton.
Camacho dragged Hamilton out of her vehicle during a traffic stop.
‘Please, don’t rip me out,’ Hamilton can be heard tell Camacho, who helped unwind her arm through the seatbelt, cell phone footage showed, according to ABC 7.
‘Can you stop? Can you stop, please?’ Hamilton asked as Camacho began forcibly tugging on her left arm.
Camacho was seen grabbing two fistfuls of Hamilton’s hair, and with the help of another female officer, pulled the woman out of her vehicle.
‘The same thing that happened to that poor boy was pretty much what happened to me,’ Hamilton, whose case is still pending, told the outlet.
‘It’s not okay, that should have never happened,’ she said of her own incident.
Hamilton said Camacho had asked for her license and registration. While searching for it, the officer allegedly became impatient and tried to get her out of the vehicle.
‘She should have never been able to continue to be a police officer, they call you guys peace officers to bring peace, not to sit there and bring commotion and cause more problems than there already was,’ she said.
The Daily Mail has contacted the Fairfield Police Department, Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District and Williams’s family for comment.
The school district directed Daily Mail to the police department for comment.
