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Video: Cops Beat the Crap Out of Driver Who Surrendered After High-Speed Chase

Footage taken from a helicopter shows officers repeatedly punching a man who gave himself up after chase from Massachusetts to New Hampshire.
Image via AP/YouTube

Authorities in New Hampshire and Massachusetts on Wednesday have vowed to investigate an incident captured on video in which police officers beat a man after a high-speed chase spanning both states.

Footage taken from a helicopter shows officers drawing their weapons on the driver of a truck they had just stopped. The man gets out of the vehicle, drops to his knees, and gets handcuffed after laying down on the ground. At least two officers can be seen repeatedly punching him while others hold him down, including one who places his knee on the man's neck.

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About an hour before the events in the video, police in Holden, Massachusetts, had tried to stop the suspect, Richard Simone, 50, who was wanted on several warrants.

Simone refused to stop, leading police on a chase that reached 100 mph and ended in Nashua, New Hampshire, according to WMUR-TV.

The use of force by law enforcement has become the focus of national debate, particularly over high-profile killings of African-Americans by mainly white officers during the last several years.

Citizen and officer videos of arrests and killings have heightened scrutiny of police behavior. Simone, along with many of the officers in the video, appeared to be white.

Massachusetts State Police told WMUR that a committee would review the pursuit and apprehension of the suspect.

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New Hampshire Governor Maggie Hassan expects the incident to be investigated by state officials, her office told the news station.

"The governor is aware of the situation and we've reached out to the Departments of Safety and Justice," Hassan's office said in a statement. "All New Hampshire public safety officials are held to the highest standards."

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