Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Sgt. Eric M. Huxley has been charged with felony counts of misconduct and battery with moderate bodily injury and was suspended without pay after video footage surfaced of him kicking a handcuffed man, Jermaine Vaughn, in the face.

Police say Huxley was helping to arrest Vaughn for disorderly conduct when the incident took place on Sept. 24, HuffPost reports. Police Chief Randal Taylor recommended that Huxley be terminated from the force after an investigation into the situation was conducted. However, he'll remain suspended without pay while the FBI conducts an independent investigation. Huxley had been on the force for 14 years.

“Our office and the FBI have opened an investigation, and if the investigation reveals prosecutable violations of any federal criminal statutes, the Department will take appropriate action,” acting U.S. Attorney John Childress said, per HuffPost.

"I'm upset," Taylor said at a press conference before showing video of the arrest. "It hurts me to see any of our officers treat someone the way you're going to see here. There is no excuse for it."

According to USA Today, Huxley was one of three officers that approached Vaughn at Monument Circle due to him being "loud and disorderly," according to an affidavit. Officers told Vaughn to quiet down, but upon his refusal, he ended up in handcuffs. The body camera footage, released on Wednesday, shows officers asking him to "lean back." At that moment, another officer pushed Vaughn up the steps and pushed him onto the ground. Huxley then appears on camera stomping his foot on Vaughn's face.

Vaughn's injuries were caught on camera. The affidavit notes he sustained a cut on his lip, and blood on his mouth was recorded in the video. His charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest were dropped on Oct. 8.

Taylor said police were made aware of the issue on Oct. 6 and he ordered a quick internal affairs investigation. IMPD will also look into the past cases of used force in all of the officers involved and will conduct a review of its protocols and practices. Huxley said the moment was a misstep, explaining that he was originally trying to put his foot on Vaughn's shoulder but missed.

“I accidentally kicked him in his face. I was attempting to put my foot on his shoulder, and I accidentally kicked him in his face,” Huxley said in an affidavit.

Eric Huxley

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