MONTPELIER, Vt. — A Burlington police officer is suing the Vermont Police Academy for head injuries she suffered during an exercise in which she was repeatedly hit in the head by a trainer.
In a lawsuit filed last week, Officer Erin Bartle alleges she suffered the injuries during training at the academy two years ago. While Bartle was wearing protective gear, including a helmet, she was hit in the head on different occasions by a trainer playing the role of an intoxicated hitchhiker.
The lawsuit says Bartle suffered a traumatic brain injury.
A September review by a Baltimore police officer commissioned by Burlington Police Chief Brandon del Pozo said an instructor striking a trainee in the head is “problematic.”
Police Academy Executive Director Richard Gauthier did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
The Associated Press
