SOUTH DAYTONA, Fla. – Authorities have filed a battery charge against a South Daytona police officer after an altercation in the back seat of a patrol car.
South Daytona Police Investigator John Zachary Pickett was arrested and charged with misdemeanor battery on Monday.
According to police, Pickett slapped Parker Neil Beasley, 26, of South Daytona, who was handcuffed, on Jan. 23.
Beasley was arrested on charges of resisting an officer with violence, possession of paraphernalia and possession of cannabis.
A police report says Beasley became agitated while the police officer was talking to him, and Pickett hit the suspect in the head through a car window.
The officer told investigators that Beasley had spit on him and started lunging at him.