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Prosecutors have dropped a felony charge against a Baltimore school officer after video shows him slapping and kicking a student last Month. Alex DeMetrick reports.

A Baltimore school police officer, captured slapping and kicking a student last month in a viral video, will not face a felony child abuse charge, reports The Baltimore Sun.

The officer, Anthony C. Spence, 44, still faces two misdemeanor charges, including second-degree assault and misconduct in office charges, according to the report.

The incident, which occurred March 1 at Reach Partnership School, came to the attention of authorities after the video was sent to CBS Baltimore. The footage shows Spence slapping a 16-year-old across the face three times and then kicking him.

A second officer, Saverna Bias, 53, is seen standing behind Spence. She also was charged with second-degree assault and misconduct in office, notes the report.

From The Sun:

The Baltimore state’s attorney’s office dropped the charges after it determined that Spence did not have “temporary care or custody” of the student and “therefore the child abuse charges are not appropriate,” spokeswoman Rochelle Ritchie said in a statement.

“The charges in these cases, like in all cases, reflect our subsequent investigation and our obligation to apply the facts to the law,” she said.

[…]

Lauren Geisser, an attorney representing the student and his parents, said the teen went to the hospital for injuries to his ribs and face. She noted that the assault and misconduct charges Spence still faces carry maximum sentences of 10 years and life, respectively.

The report notes that Spence “plans to reach out to the school district about resuming his pay.”

SOURCE: Baltimore Sun | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty | VIDEO CREDIT: Inform

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Child Abuse Charge Dropped Against Baltimore School Cop In Viral Video  was originally published on newsone.com