LONG BEACH >> The Police Department defended officers who were shown using a Taser and baton strikes against a man who appears to be resisting arrest on Monday in a widely circulated video in which witnesses can also be heard shouting for the officers to stop.

The video does not show the beginning of the confrontation between the man and police. Long Beach police Sgt. Aaron Eaton said four officers and one sergeant who were responding to 9-1-1 calls around 6 p.m. about a fistfight found the man, Porfirio Santos-Diaz, 46, of Long Beach, bloody, shirtless, acting irrationally and asking officers to kill him.

The video, which has been viewed more than 16,000 times on YouTube, was shot by a witness and then uploaded shortly after the incident.

Officers used all measures available to them to subdue the man, who at one point kicked an officer in the face, Eaton said.

“The officers communicated to (Santos-Diaz) in English and Spanish to make sure they were understood,” Eaton said.

“This is someone who has already shown that he has been violent. Even after (the Taser and baton use) he was still refusing to roll over. At that point, the officers are taking their time to step back and develop a plan.”

The video shows officers surrounding Santos-Diaz, who is on his back, when one of the officers raises his baton above his head and strikes Santos-Diaz several times on the shin. Santos-Diaz repeatedly uses both legs to kick at the striking officer. Another officer uses a Taser at least once on Santos-Diaz, who can be seen balled up in pain before being flipped over on his stomach and arrested.

The American Civil Liberties Union as well as area residents accused the department of using excessive force against the man, who suffered a broken bone in his arm and lacerations on his legs.

“Police can only use force that is proportionate to the risk of injury or resistance,” said Peter Bibring, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Southern California. “And it’s difficult to see how striking someone who’s lying on the ground is a proportionate response.”

Video surveillance from a nearby store shows Santos-Lopez punching a man in the back of the head and fighting with the unidentified man prior to the incident.

However, Bibring said even if Santos-Lopez had been violent, the repeated baton strikes seemed disproportionate, and what matters is the risk at the moment the force is used.

“On one hand, officers shouldn’t have to risk serious injuries in the line of duty, and they are entitled to use reasonable force, but the repeated baton strikes can be serious uses of force,” Bibring said.

Eaton did not comment on the amount of force used by police other than stating that an investigation is ongoing.

The department declined to release the names of the four officers and one sergeant involved.

Local reaction to the video has been mixed with some stating the police over-stepped their bounds while others, who saw the surveillance footage, saying it may have been justified.

“He was already on the ground,” said Carlos Uribe, when he was shown the video on Tuesday night. “They didn’t have to hit him.”

Connie Morales, who saw the surveillance video, said Santos-Lopez looked like he was out of control.

“I don’t know if it was excessive or not, but he was just swinging at people,” Morales said.

Santos-Diaz was taken into surgery late Tuesday at Long Beach Memorial Hospital for his injuries, his wife Lee Ann Hernandez said. Santos-Diaz was in police custody and Eaton said he will be booked on suspicion of public intoxication, pending his release from the hospital.

Although early reports mention that Santos-Diaz’ teeth were knocked out, Eaton told a different story.

“His teeth were not knocked out,” he said. “He had a partial bridge that he took out and threw on the ground.”

Eaton could not confirm whether Santos-Diaz suffered broken ribs or a collapsed lung.