Protest Follows Teenager Police Encounter in South Bend
SOUTH BEND, Ind — People held a march and protest after a video showing a South Bend police officer using force on a 14-year-old girl gained attention online.
The demonstration began at the McDonald’s on Michigan Street and continued to the County-City Building, where the South Bend Police Review Board was meeting.
The South Bend chapter of Black Lives Matter and the Nu Black Power Movement organized the protest. Protesters called for financial compensation for the teen’s family, an independent review of the officer’s actions, and the removal of fees to access police body camera footage.
Police said they responded to a call from McDonald’s employees reporting the teen acting aggressively over a meal order. Body camera footage showed Officer Samuel Chaput holding the girl facedown and later placing her in a police vehicle. Faces were redacted in the released footage, and police said minimal force was used and the teen reported no injuries.
At the public meeting, one attendee said, “That officer had no right. Not only should he be fired…”
Another person added, “…but he should be charged. Speaking on behalf of the young girl that was slammed to the ground by the police officer, I don’t see any world where a 14-year-old girl should be handled in that manner.”
South Bend Police Chief Scott Ruszkowski responded at a news conference, saying, “If you remember the initial video, grabbed by the backpack and slammed down, you saw it, that didn’t happen.”
The protest coincided with the Community Police Review Board meeting, a nine-member panel appointed by the South Bend Common Council to review complaints about officers.
People used the meeting to submit public comments and raise questions about accountability, transparency, and the interaction between officers and kids.
