An officer with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) was placed on leave this week after allegedly violating a corpse.
The Los Angeles Times first reported that an officer was caught allegedly fondling the breast of a dead woman while his partner was returning to their squad car as the two were responding to reports of a dead body.
The accused officer, who was not named, was apparently caught on body camera footage after he attempted to deactivate the camera due to a delay period that occurs when an officer deactivates the device.
“We immediately launched an administrative investigation once we learned about the incident,” LAPD chief spokesman Josh Rubenstein told the LA Times, “and we assigned the officer to home.”
The officer’s work history will be reviewed during his leave period. Assistant police chief Robert Arcos told the Times that the recording, which has not been released, was “disgusting.”
A spokesperson for the officer’s union called the allegation serious, adding that such conduct has no place in the LAPD.
“If this allegation is true, then the behavior exhibited by this officer is not only wrong, but extremely disturbing, and does not align with the values we, as police officers, hold dear and these values include respect and reverence for the deceased,” the Los Angeles Police Protective League told the Times.
“This behavior has no place in law enforcement.”