A former officer of the Shreveport, Louisiana, Police Department, Dylan Hudson, 37, was sentenced this week to 21 months in federal prison for assaulting a non-violent loitering suspect, officials stated.
Hudson was convicted earlier this year after a four-day trial.
“This defendant’s use of force was grossly excessive, inhumane and potentially fatal. The defendant repeatedly hit a nonviolent suspect in the head, kicked him in the face, tased him multiple times and pistol-whipped him in the head,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “When an officer so grievously abuses the authority entrusted to him by his community, the Justice Department will respond with the full force of the law.”
During his daylight arrest in Shreveport, Hudson was found to have physically attacked a suspect who was loitering, according to the trial evidence.
As part of the arrest process, Hudson hit the guy many times on the head and face.
Police body cameras captured a number of violent incidents, including a loaded gun strike to the head, a taser to the base of the skull, and a kick to the face, all of which may have been fatal.
According to the testimony of Hudson’s fellow officers, the suspect who was loitering was completely nonviolent during the whole arrest process. However, the threats posed by Hudson’s numerous training and policy infractions extended beyond only the criminal.
“The jury verdict and sentencing send a clear message to those who wear the badge and to the public that sickening conduct like that of Hudson’s will simply not be tolerated,” said Special Agent in Charge Douglas A. Williams Jr. of the FBI New Orleans Field Office. “The FBI is committed to ensuring those who violate the public’s trust are held accountable.”
The FBI New Orleans Field Office investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Thomas Johnson of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Mudrick for the Western District of Louisiana prosecuted the case.