The Loveland Police Department fired an officer for hitting a hospitalized woman in the face over the weekend.
Officers responded to a report of an adult female wandering in and out of traffic and speaking incoherently near the area of North Garfield Avenue and East 29th Street in Loveland at about 8:30 p.m. on Saturday.
The woman was placed into protective custody and transported to the Medical Center of the Rockies for further evaluation. Officers said the handcuffed woman was verbally abusive toward them and healthcare staff in an examination room. She also spat on a nurse and one of the officers.
Loveland Police Chief Tim Doran said in a video statement that’s when the officer struck the woman.
“An officer responded with an inappropriate use of force which resulted in minor injuries to the female subject's face,” Doran said. “The offending officer’s partner immediately intervened, removed him from the room and ensured the woman was evaluated by the emergency room staff.”
The officer, who was in his first year on the force, was placed on administrative leave that evening. The woman was medically cleared and transported to the Larimer County Jail.
