22 SHARES Share Tweet

Former North Carolina police officer Micheal Blake plead guilty Monday to misdemeanor charges from a 2018 K-9 attack on the late Kyron Hinton according to The News & Observer. Blake will not serve jail time but has given up his professional certification simply meaning he cannot work as a law enforcement officer. Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said Blake is heard on audio ordering officers to strike Hinton in the head with a flashlight and later filed a misleading statement about the incident that failed to mention any use of force according to the newspaper.

“There is no place for abuse of authority or lack of candor,” Freeman said. The incident occurred on April 3, 2018, when police responded to 911 calls about Hinton standing in the middle of the street, and video footage captured him waving his arms and shouting. Hinton was 29 at the time and unarmed.

Officers stood around Hinton and discussed how to move him to safety when former Wake County deputy Cameron Broadwell got to the scene and released the K9. During the encounter that ensued Freeman said, Blake can be heard at minimum a dozen times instructing other officers to hit Hinton.

The incident caused Kyron Hinton to sustain injuries including a broken nose, fractured eye socket, and several dog bites. Blake and another officer were fired in June 2018 after being charged with assault inflicting bodily injury and willfully failing to discharge duties, The News & Observer reported. Hinton has since passed away in February 2019 of cocaine toxicity, a day after receiving a settlement from the county. Broadwell also pleads guilty to misdemeanor charges in the attack in May 2019 and gave up his career in law enforcement. Blake will serve a suspended sentence for pleading guilty and will be required to perform 200 hours of community service.

Read more:

New York Teacher Compares Black Students to Monkeys in Photo, School District Faces $12M Lawsuit