NORRISTOWN, PA – A Norristown police officer has been placed on paid administrative leave after a department vehicle struck a naked man standing in the roadway Wednesday morning, an incident the police chief described as one that “shocked my conscience.”
The incident occurred around 8 a.m. on February 4 near Stanbridge and West Air streets in Norristown, Pennsylvania. Authorities said the unclothed man had been observed vandalizing a parked vehicle, striking passing cars, and blocking traffic when officers responded to the scene.
Video of the encounter shows a police vehicle striking the man, sending him airborne before he landed on the ground. Officers then took the man into custody and provided medical attention at the scene.
Police Chief Michael Trail called the footage “alarming and concerning” in a statement released Wednesday. “I never like to see individuals injured as a result of any police-public encounter,” Trail said.
The officer who was operating the vehicle was immediately placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation. The Montgomery County Detective Bureau has launched a formal use-of-force investigation into the incident.
Investigators said body camera footage will be reviewed as part of the probe, and the department plans to examine its use-of-force policies following the investigation’s conclusion.
Authorities have not provided updates on the man’s condition or disclosed why he was in the roadway without clothing. His identity has not been released.
Police are asking anyone who recorded video of the incident, particularly footage captured before the vehicle struck the man, to contact Montgomery County detectives at 610-278-3368.
