PHOENIX (AP) - A Phoenix police officer suspected of striking a handcuffed shoplifting suspect could face a criminal misconduct charge.
Phoenix police said Friday the department had finished a criminal investigation and submitted a recommendation to prosecutors to charge the 44-year-old officer.
Police spokesman Vincent Lewis says authorities became aware of the December incident in February when they received a video.
The footage showed the officer, who police did not name, hitting a 22-year-old shoplifting suspect already in custody.
Lewis says the officer was off-duty at a west Phoenix store and ended up in an altercation with the suspect. During the fight, the officer struck the man with his knee and closed fist a few times before handcuffing him.
The officer, a 17-year-veteran of the department, has been on administrative leave.
