A local man said his bloody, bruised face is the result of a beating from a sergeant with the Ashtabula County Sheriff's Department.
Now that sergeant is facing assault charges in connection with the altercation earlier this month.
Sgt. James Truckey was indicted by a grand jury Tuesday on charges of felonious assault, tampering with records, assault and dereliction of duty.
According to the indictment, Truckey assaulted two people on Sept. 11 after an ATV chase. Truckey is accused of assaulting the driver and passenger while they were in custody. He also allegedly falsified the report.
Edward Dirrigl, the passenger on the ATV, told newsnet5.com he was already handcuffed and on the ground when the sergeant punched him.
Dirrigl said his memory was 'a bit cloudy' that night but police from Jefferson Township, who also worked the call, assured him there was back up.
"He told me, 'don't worry - all this was caught on dash-cam.'"
Watch a portion of the body camera in the media player above.
"A lot of people don't do nothing because you believe the police are in the right all the time," Dirrigl said. "You think they're there to protect you, not hurt you."
After what he witnessed, Dirrigl said he is looking at things differently than before.
Truckey has been on administrative leave since the incident.
The driver of the ATV, identified as Eric Platt, was also indicted on charges of felonious assault, failure to comply with an order of a police officer and resisting arrest. His indictment alleges that he tried to physically harm Truckey during the chase.
