Kenosha Police Officer Puts Knee On Student's Neck: Video

KENOSHA, WI — Video released from the Kenosha Unified School District showed an off-duty police officer putting his knee on a student's neck for half a minute after breaking up a fight, according to the video.

Shawn Guetschow still works for the Kenosha Police Department, but he has resigned from Lincoln Middle School, police said in a statement. While Kenosha police investigate the video, an attorney representing the student indicated they plan to file suit.

School footage shows Guetschow breaking up a fight between two girls before falling to the ground and placing his knee on a 12-year-old girl's neck for half a minute on March 4.

In the grainy video, Guetschow ran to two girls in a scuffle in the school lunch room and pulls them apart. Students watching the altercation blocked part of the view and Guetschow fell down.

Then he rolled on top of one of the girls and used his hand and knee to restrain the girl by the back of her head and neck. His knee stayed there for around 22 seconds as he handcuffed the girl, video showed.

The police officer quit his security job at the school on March 15, citing "mental and emotional strain" on his family and lack of support from the school district in a letter to the superintendent.

The school district closed its internal employment investigation on Guetschow, school district spokesperson Tanya Ruder told Patch.

According to Wisconsin law, a law enforcement officer can only restrain a student when a clear and present risk to the student or others is visible. Officers can't put pressure or weight on a student's throat, back of head or neck that might stop them from breathing.