Springfield officer Angel Marrero, seen in video of controversial High School of Commerce arrest, arraigned on assault charge

A Springfield school resource officer was arraigned on an assault charge Friday in connection with the arrest of a High School of Commerce student that sparked public controversy earlier this year.

Officer Angel Marrero was arraigned in Springfield District Court on charges of assault and battery and filing a false police report.

He pleaded not guilty and was released on personal recognizance, on the condition he stay away from the victim and his family.

Marrero was walking down a High School of Commerce hallway on Dec. 3 when a 15-year-old student made a comment to him. Marrero then pushed the student, grabbed him by the back of the neck and shoved the student against the wall before arresting him.

The interaction was captured in a video which was widely shared on social media.

The footage drew public outcry and led to a criminal review being opened by the Office of Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni, as well as an internal investigation by the Community Police Hearing Board.

The video also contradicts the officer’s report on the student’s arrest.

Marrero wrote in his report that the teen walked by the teen and called him a “p----," according to his report.

“I was shocked by this comment as I had no prior interaction with [the student.] I then asked him ‘what did you say?’ as I was perplexed as to why he would even be making such a comment towards me," Marrero wrote. “[The student] then at this time stated ‘You’re a p---- and I’ll slap the s--- out of you!'"

The student’s comments are not audible on the video.

What followed in the officer’s report differs from what is visible in the security footage.

In a statement to internal investigators, Marrero said he did not deliberately file a false report on the incident.

“At no time did I ever have the intention to write the arrest report of [redacted] in a manner that could be perceived as deceitful nor did I write it with the intention of being deceitful,” Marrero wrote, according to a copy of the Internal Investigations Unit report obtained by MassLive.

“I have been an officer with this department for approaching nine years,” Marrero continued. “During these approximate nine years I have never had any disciplinary issues. I have never had any complaints of excessive force. I have never had any complaints of being deceitful in any of my reports or in any arrests I have made or assisted in. I take great pride in my work and make every effort to perform my duties in a professional and honorable manner.”

City leaders have called for an audit of the department following the incident.

“It was disgusting. It was the last straw for me,” Orlando Ramos, a former council president and the current chairman of the public safety committee, told MassLive.

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