EUCLID, Ohio — A Euclid jury found police officer Michael Amiott guilty of ɑѕѕɑᴜʟт and interfering with civil rights Friday after a weeklong trial in Euclid Municipal Court stemming from a 2017 traffic stop during which Amiott was caught in a viral video repeatedly ρᴜпᴄһɪпɡ Richard Hubbard.
After deliberating for multiple hours, the jury returned a guilty verdict on two misdemeanor counts: one count of ɑѕѕɑᴜʟт and one count of interfering with civil rights.
On Monday, Amiott was assigned to “non-enforcement, administrative duties” until further notice, according to a statement from Euclid police.
Amiott will be sentenced at a hearing in the near future.
“I think that as a result of the very bold verdict from the jury, the efforts from members of the community, justice was served today,” said Dr. Richard T. Montgomery ll, Euclid Community Activist.
Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer released a statement following the verdict.
“With regard to the recent court ruling in the Officer Michael Amiott trial, I believe it is important that the process was allowed to reach its ultimate conclusion in the court of law and not the court of public opinion. It is my hope that this decision can start to bring closure to all of the parties affected by this five-year-long process. The dedicated and hard-working men and women of the Euclid Police Department continue to serve honorably and selflessly during an extremely challenging time for our society and our profession. The Euclid Police Department will move forward and continue to serve our community with impartiality and transparency.”
The Fraternal Order of Police/Ohio Labor Council stated they are “disappointed” to learn about the conviction of Amiott.
“We are disappointed in the jury’s guilty verdict,” Dave Trend, President of FOP stated. “We remain confident that Officer Amiott’s actions were reasonable given the circumstances and we continue to stand by him.”
Amiott, and the two other officers involved in the traffic stop, are also currently defendants in a federal civil rights lawsuits for using ᴇхᴄᴇѕѕɪᴠᴇ fᴏгᴄᴇ.
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