Roundtree defends decision to fire officer | The Augusta Chronicle

Sheriff Richard Roundtree said he was supportive of ex-Deputy Brian McDuffie’s decisions while detaining a 15-year-old until the one where the deputy struck the teen in the head.

“It goes against every bit of training we’ve ever been taught,” Roundtree said Tuesday.

The sheriff fired McDuffie Monday after an investigation into allegations of excessive force while detaining Kyvan James on Leawood Court in Hephzibah on Aug. 3.

According to his mother, Kenya James, Kyvan was walking to his home with a friend when they saw blue lights outside a Leawood Court residence. Out of curiosity, the teens decided to take a shortcut near the home where police were investigating a possible burglary.

The officers, who noticed the teens, asked them to stop but they ran. James said her son made a foolish decision to run, but he did so out of fear.

via Roundtree defends decision to fire officer | The Augusta Chronicle.