A man accuses two police officers of beating him: "Go ahead and hit me, but stop hitting me."

PalmA man accused two National Police officers on Monday of beating him while they were arresting him for an alleged incident of gender-based violence. The First Section of the Provincial Court is trying both officers and the victim, who is also accused of assaulting the officers during an incident that occurred on April 14, 2021, in Palma. The hearing began with the testimony of the victim's alleged partner, who is also accused of assault and causing damage to the officers. The man admitted that he had an argument with his partner that night, although he denied that she assaulted or threatened him. At that point, they went their separate ways, although she called emergency services (112), which the man learned later. Shortly afterward, he encountered a group of National Police officers. "I thought it was a raid or that they were going to fine me for not wearing a mask, but one of them, very agitated, told me, 'I'll teach you to respect women,' and started hitting me with his baton," he explained. He claimed he could only cover himself to protect himself from the blows. "They wouldn't tell me anything. I told them I'd let them arrest me, but to stop hitting me," he stated. The prosecution is requesting that both officers be sentenced to 11 months in prison for assault and that the third defendant receive a sentence of three years and two months for assault, property damage, and resisting arrest. According to the prosecutor's indictment, the events occurred on the night of March 14, 2021, when several police patrols were dispatched to a street in Palma after receiving a report of a possible case of gender-based violence.

When they went to arrest the suspect, he allegedly slapped one of the officers and then, once inside the vehicle, punched the windshield and the rear door, causing damage valued at over 200 euros. The two officers charged, intending to stop him and prevent him from fleeing, struck him with their batons on his upper torso and head. According to the public prosecutor, the blows to the head were not strictly necessary and caused the detainee several injuries.

The defendant admitted that he became violent and damaged the police vehicle because he thought they would also attack his family, who had come to the scene. He denied, however, assaulting the officers.

Minimal force

The first officer, for his part, asserted that the minimum necessary force was used during the arrest, and that regulation batons were always employed in response to the man's "overbearing" behavior. The blows, he explained, were always aimed at the legs to unbalance him and allow for his arrest. The officer maintained that he never struck the detainee in the head "due to the danger it poses" and that, at most, he hit him in the lower back or lumbar region. "I never intended to injure him. In my entire career, I have used regulation batons only a handful of times. It's not pleasant to hit anyone," he concluded. The officer added that it was while he was speaking with the woman who had reported the incident of gender-based violence that he saw the man approaching, "very agitated." "I put my arm around his chest and asked him to keep a safe distance, but without saying a word, he hit me on the arm and punched me in the face, knocking my glasses off," he recounted.

The second officer, who was a trainee at the time, gave a similar account to his colleague and recalled that they drew their batons when the man assaulted the first officer. Like his colleague, he maintained that, given the man's behavior, they struck him in the legs and buttocks to subdue him.

The prosecution is requesting that both officers be sentenced to 11 months in prison for assault and that the third defendant receive a sentence of three years and two months for assault, property damage, and resisting arrest.