This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/england/south_yorkshire/6428865.stm

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
CCTV shows officer punching woman CCTV shows officer punching woman
(10 minutes later)
CCTV footage has been released which shows a police officer repeatedly punching a young woman outside a Sheffield nightclub.CCTV footage has been released which shows a police officer repeatedly punching a young woman outside a Sheffield nightclub.
The footage, captured outside the Niche club last July, also shows Toni Comer, 20, being dragged into a police van. The footage also shows Toni Comer, 20, being dragged into a police van.
Ms Comer, from Sheffield, was being arrested by police for damaging a car - an offence she has since admitted. Ms Comer, from Sheffield, was being arrested last July for damaging a car - an offence she has since admitted.
Police said they would investigate a complaint by Ms Comer but added they were happy with the officer's conduct. Police said they would investigate a complaint by Ms Comer but they were "happy" with the officer's conduct. He said he had been trying to subdue her.
Restrained by policeRestrained by police
The footage, obtained by the Guardian newspaper and shown on BBC2's Newsnight, shows Ms Comer and a police officer falling down a flight of stairs. The footage, obtained by the Guardian newspaper and shown on BBC Two's Newsnight, shows Ms Comer and a police officer falling down a flight of stairs outside the Niche nightclub.
At the bottom, she is restrained by a group of officers, one of whom punches her five times - although it is not clear on what part of her body.At the bottom, she is restrained by a group of officers, one of whom punches her five times - although it is not clear on what part of her body.
Other police officers then arrive, including a dog handler, and she is dragged to a police van with her trousers round her ankles. I struck her as hard as I was physically able with my right fist in an attempt to subdue her Pc Mulhall
Toni Comer has admitted an offence of criminal damage She is later dragged to a police van with her trousers round her knees.
On Wednesday, Ms Comer, who says she is preparing a civil case against the police, admitted criminal damage at Sheffield Magistrates' Court relating to the damage to a car. On Wednesday, at Sheffield Magistrates' Court, Ms Comer admitted criminal damage to a car, which she said happened after she was ejected from the nightclub, where she had been drinking brandy and had become aggressive.
She was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £250 to the owner of the car. She was given a conditional discharge and ordered to pay £250 to the vehicle's owner.
In a statement, the police officer, named only as Pc Mulhall, said Ms Comer had become violent. Ms Comer says she is now preparing a civil case against the police in relation to her arrest, during which claims to have suffered cuts and bruises.
"I couldn't believe it to be honest, I couldn't believe they could do something like that at all," she said.
Police investigation
In a statement, the police officer who punched her, named only as Pc Mulhall, said Ms Comer had become violent.
"As her hands became free she tried to grab handfuls of my genitals and knee and kick me in the same place."As her hands became free she tried to grab handfuls of my genitals and knee and kick me in the same place.
"At this point, I struck her as hard as I was physically able with my right fist in an attempt to subdue her. There was no apparent effect so I did this twice more.""At this point, I struck her as hard as I was physically able with my right fist in an attempt to subdue her. There was no apparent effect so I did this twice more."
He said she continued to resist handcuffs.He said she continued to resist handcuffs.
"I now struck her as hard as I was physically able in an attempt to deaden her arm...in the end I had to use brute force," he said."I now struck her as hard as I was physically able in an attempt to deaden her arm...in the end I had to use brute force," he said.
Toni Comer has admitted an offence of criminal damage
The Newsnight programme showed the footage to former Flying Squad commander John O'Connor.
He said: "The fact that these blows were in pursuance of trying to subdue her to get handcuffs on seems to me to be quite reasonable."
But Shami Chakrabarti, director of human rights group Liberty, called for an urgent investigation by the Independent Police Complaints Commission into the officer's actions.
"These images turn the stomach," she said.
In a statement, South Yorkshire Police said: "We are satisfied with the way this incident was handled and happy with the conduct of the officer but we will investigate the circumstances of the complaint as we would with any complaint.In a statement, South Yorkshire Police said: "We are satisfied with the way this incident was handled and happy with the conduct of the officer but we will investigate the circumstances of the complaint as we would with any complaint.
"It is worth noting that as a result of the original incident the individual was convicted of a criminal offence.""It is worth noting that as a result of the original incident the individual was convicted of a criminal offence."