An unknown number of police officers in Rochester, New York, were suspended Monday, one day after the release of a video showing authorities pepper spraying a 9-year-old girl while responding to a report of “family trouble,” officials said.
In a statement, a spokesman for Mayor Lovely Warren said the suspensions, which were immediate, were ordered after Warren met with the Police Chief Cynthia Herriott-Sullivan. The suspensions will remain in place until an internal probe is completed, the spokesman said.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many officers were suspended. The spokesman did not respond to a request for additional details.
During a news conference Sunday, Warren told reporters that the Jan. 29 incident was “not something that any of us should want to justify.” She added that she saw her own child’s face in the face of the 9-year-old.
