Indianapolis officer who kicked handcuffed man in face pleads guilty to federal charge
INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis police sergeant who was seen in body camera footage kicking a handcuffed man in the face during an arrest in 2021 has pleaded guilty to a felony in federal court.
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Sgt. Eric Huxley, who is currently suspended from the department, formalized a guilty plea Monday for violating the civil rights of an arrestee by using excessive force, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
He was indicted on one count of deprivation of rights under the color of law in the federal Southern District of Indiana in October 2022 – more than a year after the arrest at the heart of the charge took place.
Body camera footage of the Sept. 24, 2021, arrest released by the department shows Jermaine Vaughn falling on his back near the steps at Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis during his interaction with Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers.
Moments later, Huxley's foot is seen stomping down on Vaughn’s face. He was in handcuffs at the time.
Despite knowing Vaughn no longer posed a threat to officers or the public, federal prosecutors said Huxley "intentionally raised his right foot and drove it down onto" Vaughn's head and face.
Vaughn was then arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct and later charged with two misdemeanors of disorderly conduct and resisting law enforcement, but both of those charges were dismissed shortly after.
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Huxley 'remorseful' about his actions, attorney says
Outside the federal courthouse, Huxley's attorney John Kautzman told reporters his client had always been "remorseful" about his actions that day, which influenced his decision to enter into a plea agreement. Huxley knows what he did was "thoughtless" at the time, Kautzman said.
Huxley’s plea agreement states that, before Huxley kicked him in the face, Vaughn had been insulting a separate officer involved in the arrest as the officer attempted to remove Vaughn’s belt. But U.S. attorneys had to prove that Huxley's act deprived Vaughn of his rights under federal law or the U.S. Constitution, including “the right to be free from the unreasonable use of force by a police officer.”
Huxley "knew that there was no legitimate law enforcement reason to use hard strikes, including foot strikes, against the head or face of a person who is handcuffed, under effective control by other officers, and physically unable to harm others," his plea agreement states.
The charge he’s pleading guilty to carries a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release after prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
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Huxley still facing state charges and a lawsuit
Court documents say the guilty plea in the federal case remains separate from Huxley’s other pending criminal case in Marion County, where he faces two Level 6 felonies of battery and official misconduct for the same incident. He has a hearing in that case Tuesday.
"Those negotiations are ongoing," Kautzman said Monday, when asked about the Marion County case.
Huxley is also facing a lawsuit. Vaughn sued the officer in Marion County court in February. He's asking to be financially compensated for claims against Huxley, Indianapolis police, the City of Indianapolis and two other officers involved in his arrest. Those claims include intentional battery, unlawful and excessive force, official misconduct and negligence.
IMPD Chief Randal Taylor has recommended Huxley’s termination to the department's Civilian Police Merit Board, which will review that recommendation once Huxley's criminal cases conclude.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY NETWORK: Indianapolis officer pleads guilty to kicking handcuffed man in face
