Several outlets reported that a Texas police officer was arrested for allegedly using a Taser on her three children.
KHOU 11 reported that former Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s office deputy Xochitl Ortiz, 34, was charged with three counts of injury to a child with bodily injury.
In early April, Ortiz allegedly used a Taser on three children aged 8, 11, and 12 according to court documents obtained by KHOU 11 and The Daily Beast.
According to court documents, Ortiz used the taser in drive-stun mode, a compliance technique, on the children’s bodies, including their hands, shoulders, and buttocks. The taser was owned by Christopher Worthington, a Harris County police officer and the boyfriend of Ortiz.
According to The Daily Beast, Ortiz’s children reported the incident to their dad, who is currently divorcing Ortiz. The children reported feeling unsafe in Ortiz’s residence.
The Daily Beast reported, citing prosecutors, that Worthington was at the residence when the children were tasered.
District 4 Mark Herman stated in a statement to Insider that he was informed of the allegations on April 14 and that an investigation was subsequently launched. Ortiz was arrested on Wednesday and subsequently dismissed. Additionally, KHOU 11 reported that Ortiz’s boyfriend was also terminated.
Ortiz is being held in the Harris County Jail on a $150,000 bond.
“Any allegation of police misconduct, rather on duty or off, instantly becomes our top priority,” Herman said. “Every one of us who puts on this uniform wants to maintain the pride in our agency and our profession and we can only do that by fully investigating any allegations of wrongdoing. I am sincerely grateful for our partner agencies, who joined with us in this investigation.”
