A police officer is accused of breaking the jaw of a teenager he believed was acting inappropriately with a relative.
Lowrie Cornell Simon, 37, who lives in Broward County and is a police officer in Opa-locka, struck the boy in his chest and mouth when they met Sunday morning at a Pembroke Park residence, according to a Broward Sheriff deputy’s report.
The boy, who a family member said is 17, denied Simon’s accusation.
He was treated at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood for a broken mandible, the report said.
The teeth of the teen’s lower jaw appeared as if they had been pushed back, and were wired into place by hospital staff, the report said.
Simon was arrested Sunday night and freed Monday on a $5,000 bond. Simon’s agency put him on paid leave, Opa-locka Police Chief James Dobson said Tuesday.
“He is on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the criminal and internal affairs investigations,” Dobson said.
Simon is a road patrol officer who was hired by the department on Oct. 15, 2014. The agency’s internal affairs probe will begin once the criminal case is closed.
Simon’s attorney, George Odom, Jr., said in an email: “My client is looking forward to his day in court. Where, once the facts are exposed will provide clarity to these allegations.”
Simon had to surrender his weapons and identification to supervisors, and is fulfilling his leave at home, Dobson said.
