‘Like a weight being lifted;’ Woman assaulted by former Butler Twp. sergeant speaks after conviction

VANDALIA — The woman assaulted by a former Butler Twp. police sergeant says she feels like “a weight” has been lifted after he was convicted Friday.

News Center 7′s Mike Campbell was in Vandalia Municipal Court Friday when retired Butler Twp. Sergeant Todd Stanley was found guilty of assault.

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As we’ve previously reported, Stanley was shown on video punching Laticka Hancock multiple times during an arrest at a Butler Twp. McDonald’s earlier this year.

After the verdict was read, Hancock told Campbell that she owed the man who took the cellphone video of the incident.

“He literally played a part and if it was not for him, we would not have been here,” Hancock said.

Hancock was on the stand Thursday and Stanley took the stand Friday. He told the court he did what he needed to do to help a fellow officer who had decided to arrest her.

“She was resisting, we didn’t know if she was on drugs, we didn’t know if she had weapons,” Stanley said.

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Prosecutors pointed out that Stanley’s written description of what happened changed two or three times, especially after the video surfaced. Both sides believed the video told the story, but visiting judge James Brogan believed the video showed an assault, not a proper use of force, and found Stanley guilty.

“At the time she was struck, I find that she was not a threat to the officer, and the actions taken by him in striking her, was an assault, and therefore, I find him guilty,” Brogan said.

Hancock told News Center 7 that she was relieved after the verdict.

“Literally, I can feel like a weight being lifted. I finally feel like I was being heard, when initially, that was all I wanted was just someone to hear me, so I’m just overwhelmed,” she explained.

Sentencing for Stanley is expected in a few weeks.

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