A 15-year-old Florida girl was arrested after being caught on video brazenly slamming the hood of a police cruiser with a metal shovel while an officer was still inside. She's now facing a felony charge for the incident. Amy Chance was caught on body camera video hitting a Port St. Lucie police car with a shovel on November 3, police said on Sunday.
Officers had been called to the home after reports of a disturbance involving the teen. Bodycam footage released by the Port St. Lucie Police Department shows Chance standing in the middle of the street, holding a shovel, and walking toward a patrol car with an officer inside.
Random Attack
Chance was seen striking the vehicle several times without any apparent interaction. "Are you kidding me?" the officer says before stepping out of his car, drawing his Taser, and ordering the teen to drop the weapon.
The video then shows the girl glaring at the officer before finally letting the shovel fall to the ground.
As she flips off the officer and starts to walk away, he moves in and orders her to stop.
"Get on the f–king ground," the officer says in a firm but controlled tone, turning her around and making her kneel before handcuffing her on the pavement.
Authorities said the 15-year-old was arrested without any further trouble. Chance is now facing a felony criminal mischief charge after allegedly causing more than $1,200 in damage to the patrol car.
"Regardless of age, intentional damage of people or property in our city will lead to an arrest," the Port St. Lucie Police Department said in a statement.
Police have not yet said what prompted the initial call to Chance's home or why she chose to attack the police cruiser.
Reckless Behavior
The 15-year-old's arrest comes just weeks after a separate shovel-related incident in California ended in tragedy. In that case, a police officer in Anaheim fatally shot a man who charged at him with a shovel in broad daylight outside an elementary school on September 15.
Police said the officer had responded to a 911 call around 12:45 p.m. about a man acting erratically — possibly under the influence — and carrying both a brick and a shovel.
When the officer arrived, 36-year-old Rudy Anthony Martinez II spotted the patrol car and ran toward it, swinging the shovel, according to dashcam footage.
The officer repeatedly ordered Martinez to "sit down" and warned him he would be shot if he didn't stop. After firing two warning shots with no effect, the officer opened fire, fearing for his safety.
Martinez was taken to a hospital but died about 30 minutes later.
