Surveillance video shows off-duty officer kneeling on 12-year-old’s neck at school

KENOSHA, Wis. — School officials in Kenosha, Wisconsin, released surveillance footage from inside a school that appears to show an off-duty police officer putting his knee on the neck of a 12-year-old girl to restrain her.

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The school district released redacted footage of the lunchroom fight that happened on March 4. The video shows Kenosha police officer Shawn Guetschow intervene in a fight between students before falling to the ground and hitting his head.

On the video, Guetschow, who was working as a security guard at the school, can be seen pushing the 12-year-old’s head to the ground and pressing his knee into her neck for several seconds, before handcuffing her and walking her out of the cafeteria.

Cellphone video captured at the time and shared on social media also shows the officer putting his knee on the girl’s neck.

The child’s father, Jerrel Perez, was the person who publicly asked the school district to release footage of the altercation, and has said that he wants the district attorney to bring charges against the officer, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Placing a knee on the child’s neck was among the restraint moves that were banned for Wisconsin law enforcement officers last year, according to the paper.

The 12-year-old is currently in therapy and seeing a neurologist for her injuries, her father told The Associated Press.

The school district initially placed the officer on leave, but he resigned from his part-time job with the school Tuesday, the district confirmed to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinal. In his resignation letter, Guetschow complained the school district did not support him, and that this incident has placed a heavy burden on his family.

In a statement to the AP, Kenosha police said Guetschow remains employed at their department.

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