Philly Police Investigating Video of Officer Apparently Hitting Young Woman

Philly police are investigating an altercation between an officer and a young woman depicted in footage that is circulating on social media.

The incident allegedly occurred when officers attempted to break up a brawl between a large group of teenagers in Kingsessing. 

Warning: The video contains violence and strong language.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BOx3rvuBgPt/?taken-by=priority_towing

A female police officer is seen backing a young woman away from the group. After a few seconds, the officer appears to push the young woman to the ground before hitting her.

Police Commissioner Richard Ross told reporters that the teenage girl captured in the footage has said she slapped the officer in the face before the officer pulled her to the ground. Ross told the Inquirer that police had been called to the 1300 block of South 54th Street on Monday afternoon because of reports of a weapon and that “the whole scene was ugly.”

Ross told reporters that the young woman and the officer seen in the video told police the same story as to how the incident occurred.

The video is being investigated by Internal Affairs.

This story has been updated to reflect new information from the Police Department.

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