'He punched and pounded on her': Family of great-grandmother brutally beaten by an LA trooper break their silence to demand justice as he's put on PAID leave

Motorist David Diaz filmed a California Highway Patrol officer punching a woman least 11 times in the head on Tuesday

She puts up her hands to protect herself but does not appear to resist

CHP Assistant Chief Chris O'Quinn said the woman had been walking on the highway endangering herself and people in traffic, and the officer was trying to restrain her

Lawyer Caree Harper, representing the woman's family, said they want authorities held accountable

The victim's daughter revealed she's a great-grandmother in a press conference calling for justice

The unidentified officer has been put on paid administrative leave



The family of a woman who was caught on camera being pummeled by a California Highway Patrol trooper on the side of a highway have spoken out for the first time since the incident, demanding justice for the victim.

'He punched and pound and pound on her, the only thing she could do was block her face,' Mayisha Adams, the unnamed victim's daughter, said Saturday.

The woman had been walking barefoot on eastbound Interstate 10 west of downtown Los Angeles Tuesday before the officer tackled her to the ground.



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Struggle: A motorist filmed while the officer climbed on top of the woman and proceeded to punch her Restrained: A California Highway Patrol officer straddles the woman while punching her in the head A passing driver videotaped the incident showing the CHP trooper pinning down the woman and repeatedly punching her in the face.

The victim's family have hired Los Angeles attorney Caree Harper to represent them in the case against the California Highway Patrol.

Harper said her clients want the authorities held accountable for 'beating a great-grandmother in broad daylight.' The lawyer declined to disclose the woman's name or answer questions about what she was doing along the edge of one of the city's busiest freeways. 'We want the focus to be what he was doing to her, not what she was doing' prior to the confrontation, said Harper, who said she is representing the family. 'She was getting beat like an animal. No one should ever be beat like that.' The California Highway Patrol has vowed to carry out a thorough investigation - but authorities claimed the trooper in question simply stopped her for her own protection. CHP Assistant Chief Chris O'Quinn said at a news conference that the woman was endangering herself and people in traffic, and the officer was forced to restrain her. O'Quinn added that the woman had begun walking off the freeway but returned when the confrontation occurred. The officer involved has not been identified and has been put on paid administrative leave while the investigation is carried out.



Press conference: CHP Assistant Chief Chris O'Quinn, pictured said the woman had been walking on the highway endangering herself and people in traffic, and the officer was trying to restrain her

Passing motorist David Diaz recorded the uniformed officer as he jabbed the woman at least 11 times in the head Tuesday.

'The most animalistic, most brutal way to subdue someone is to pound someone's head into the concrete with really big blows to the head,' Diaz told ABC7.

'There was no weapons - it's obviously excess force,' he continued. 'He starts really letting loose... He starts pounding down on her face really hard. He doesn't try to grab her hands first.'



The video on Diaz's cell phone shows him slowing down for a traffic stop as a woman can be seen heading towards the median on the freeway.

As punches begin to fly, the woman can be seen trying to sit up and protect herself by putting up her hands but she does not appear to resist the trooper.

The officer approaches her before he forces her to the ground and pins her down, repeatedly hitting her while Diaz and his fellow car passengers gasp in horror.