Indictment: Cop punched, kicked, kneed, zapped arrested man

SHREVEPORT, La. (AP) — A federal grand jury has indicted a former Louisiana police officer on a charge accusing him of injuring an arrested man by a number of means, including punching him, pistol-whipping him and slamming his head to the ground.

Former Shreveport officer Dylan Hudson pleaded innocent Thursday, acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook said in a news release.

Defense attorney Christopher Dowd Hatch of Shreveport did not immediately respond to an email and a text requesting comment.

An indictment handed up Wednesday charged him with depriving a man identified by his initials of his right to be protected from unreasonable force during an arrest on Aug. 5, 2019.

Hudson “punched M.T. in the face and head, kneed M.T. in the stomach, tased M.T. in the neck and head, pistol-whipped M.T. in the head, slammed M.T.’s head into the ground, and kicked M.T. in the face, all without justification,” the indictment said.

It added, “The offense resulted in bodily injury to M.T. and involved the use of dangerous weapons (a Taser, a pistol, and a shod foot).”

City police put him on paid leave Aug. 8, 2019, because of information that he might have broken a criminal law and arrested him Aug. 20, 2019, according to a police news release at the time.

If convicted, Hudson could get up to 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and three years on supervised release.

Hudson’s arrest was on a state charge of malfeasance in office. A Sept. 13 trial date is currently set for that case, KTBS-TV reported.