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Policeman put on leave after incident caught on video

A police officer who appears to choke a skateboarder and put two others in a headlock in a video posted online has been put on administrative leave while police investigate, officials said.

"Unfortunately, the video shows it pretty good," Hot Springs Mayor Mike Bush said on Tuesday.

Witnesses said they saw the officer, Joey Williams, stop the skateboarders on a downtown sidewalk Thursday. Skateboarding is banned in the area.

The video posted on Monday on the popular video-sharing site YouTube shows Williams apparently choking one of the skateboarders after forcing him to the ground, then chasing and wrestling two others while holding them in a headlock.

Williams can be heard threatening one person with pepper spray if he moved, and several voices are heard asking why they were being arrested.

Bush said he will not be sure of the city's next step until the investigation is complete. The video was taken by Matthew Jon McCormack and another unidentified skater.

Williams did not answer a request through the department for an interview and did not respond to a phone message left at his home.

Police spokesman McCrary Means identified two of those arrested as McCormack, 21, and Skylar Nalls, 19. McCormack faces a misdemeanor battery charge after allegedly pushing or striking a 67-year-old city employee during the fight, Means said. Nalls was cited for skateboarding and faces misdemeanor charges of fleeing and obstructing government operations.

Four juveniles involved in the incident also face skateboarding citations and resisting arrest charges, Means said.

McCormack disputed many of the police allegations. He said he pulled on the city employee's arm after the man picked a girl off her feet in a choke-hold.
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