An appeal has been delayed for a Lafayette Police officer captured on video apparently pushing and punching a man who was handcuffed.
The attorney for Pablo Estrada told the Lafayette Fire and Police Civil Service Board that the District Attorney had opened a file on the case and would be taking it to a grand jury for a decision. That means the civil service board hearing will have to wait.
We reached Estrada, who confirmed that he asked the board to allow him to delay hearing his appeal, and the board agreed. Estrada said that unresolved matters need to be resolved prior to his hearing. He said he hopes he can present his case to the board next month.
A video was released earlier this year which was taken in November 2020. It was taken shortly after a man was arrested on domestic violence and resisting an officer charges.
Officer Estrada and the man enter the room and Estrada tells him to sit on a bench. The man walks towards the bench, still handcuffed. He does not take a seat.
Estrada stands up and walks toward him; the man takes a step back. Estrada returns to the desk, then the man steps towards the officer, who stands up and walks the man towards the wall.
Estrada points towards the bench and then moves towards the man, apparently pushing him by his chest – then punching the man in his stomach, then holding on to the man's shirt and forcing him to sit.
Estrada returns to the desk, and moments later a few officers enter the room.
The sheriff's office investigated the incident because it happened inside the jail, but it's unclear if Estrada is facing charges.
Lafayette Police Department has had no comment.
