A Baltimore police officer was charged with assaulting a man with crutches who reportedly refused to wear his face mask.
A grand jury indicted officer Andre Maurice Pringle on a second-degree assault charge and a charge of impropriety on the job after he pushed and hit Brandon Walker on the floor outside a Shoppers grocery store on April 19.
The incident came after Walker allegedly entered the store with the mask on top of his head, the Baltimore City Attorney’s Office said in a press release. Governor Larry Hogan issued an executive order requiring people to wear a face mask or cover due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Walker, who used a crutch and plastered his right foot, refused to pull the mask over his mouth and nose, according to the release and the charge. A store manager named Pringle, who was working at the store, for help.
“Officer Pringle, who was in full BPD uniform at the time, approached Walker and warned him that he should leave the store,” prosecutors said. “The two started walking towards the exit. Walker was shouting and cursing Officer Pringle as they continued towards the automated entry / exit doors.”
Once in the hall, Walker stopped and “looked ugly” at Pringle, prosecutors said. The policeman allegedly grabbed Walker by the jacket, pushed him out and threw him face down on the floor, causing Walker to hit his head on the pavement.
Pringle then climbed on top of Walker and bent his left leg up, according to prosecutors.
“The contact that started with the push and continued until the arrest resulted in intentional, harmful, offensive and unwanted touches by Officer Pringle,” the statement said. “The physical attacks were not accidental, consented, nor legally justified.”
A woman who answered a phone number listed for Pringle said he would not comment on the case. It is unclear whether the officer has a lawyer and the Baltimore Police Department could not be reached immediately on Thursday.
