A Portland police officer Corey Budworth accused of hitting of a photographer during a Black Lives Matter protest released a public video apology to the woman, according to KGW8 News. The video comes conveniently after prosecutors dropped his criminal charges in connection to the incident.
The Black Lives Matter protests of 2020 resulted in the injuries of many demonstrators who were struck with batons, pepper-sprayed and shot with rubber bullets as they were ambushed by the police in riot gear in the street. One of those people was Teri Jacobs, an independent photographer who was seen in a viral video being knocked onto the ground by Officer Budworth as the police stormed through the street. Budworth also walked up to her while she was on the ground and struck her in the face with his baton before walking off.
Budworth was downtown as a part of the Portland Police Bureau’s Rapid Response Team to do crowd control. However, once he was slammed with that fourth-degree misdemeanor assault charge, the entire team resigned. Jacobs was given $50,000 in settlement from the city in her civil rights lawsuit.
However, the two had a one-on-one conversation through the restorative justice process to settle the tension.
Watch Budworth’s Apology Here:
Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt said in a statement that he looks forward to more conversations like these between the cops and the community.
“This resolution, through a restorative justice process, is a brave example of what healing can and should look like. If a police officer and a protester can come together in dialogue, understanding, and healing, I believe our city can as well,” he said.
Budworth has been on administrative leave since June 2021 but is expected to return to duty while still awaiting the results from an internal affairs investigation.