Warrants were filed in Cleveland Municipal Court on Thursday against two police officers with Cleveland's Gang Impact Unit for allegedly assaulting individuals who were handcuffed in separate incidents in 2021.
According to court records, officer Dennis Meehan, 30, who is now working for Bratenahl Police, is accused of shoving the arms of a handcuffed individual up behind their back during an arrest on Oct. 19, 2021 and then slamming their leg in a police cruiser's door.
Meehan is charged with two counts of assault, dereliction of duty and unlawful restraint.
The Bratenahl Police Department released the following statement Thursday:
"On Thursday, January 12th, 2023, the Bratenahl Police Department became aware of criminal charges filed against a Village of Bratenahl Police Officer in Cleveland Municipal Court.
The alleged incident occurred prior to the Officer’s employment with the Village of Bratenahl.
The Officer was immediately placed on paid administrative leave pending an internal review.
We are currently gathering information regarding the allegations."
The other case involves officer Kevin Warnock, 46, who allegedly slapped an individual in the face who was handcuffed and lying on the ground with their hands behind their back. Court records also state the officer grabbed the person's face and neck. The assault allegedly happened on June 15, 2021.
Warnock is charged with assault and dereliction of duty.
The Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association confirmed the officers were part of the gang unit on the dates the alleged assaults occurred. Police union President Jeff Follmer issued the following statement regarding the matter:
"We are looking forward to our day in court. These guys should be getting (an) award instead of criminal charges. And the city wonders why they can not recruit new police officers."
Both officers are scheduled to appear in court on Friday for the charges, which are all misdemeanors.
The City of Cleveland confirmed this is in relation to Mayor Justin Bibb asking the FBI to investigate the gang unit.
News 5 has reached out to the CPD for comment.
Watch live and local news any time:
Download the News 5 Cleveland app now for more stories from us, plus alerts on major news, the latest weather forecast, traffic information and much more. Download now on your Apple device here, and your Android device here.
You can also catch News 5 Cleveland on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV NOW, Hulu Live and more. We're also on Amazon Alexa devices. Learn more about our streaming options here.
