A Pennsylvania State Trooper is now on unpaid leave after being charged with pepper spraying his girlfriend’s 13-year-old son.
Police say that Trooper Ernest Boatright fired pepper spray at the boy without warning after he found him asleep in his bed rather than at school, reports WTAE.
According to court records, Boatright denied that he maced the boy and said that he only pepper sprayed two cats sitting on his enclosed porch.
“Trooper Boatright vehemently denies the charges that have been filed against him,” Boatright’s attorney, Matthew Zatko, said. “He is very much looking forward to the opportunity to defend himself and clear his name.”
The boy, however, told police that Boatright had used pepper spray on him before.
Boatright, who had been a state trooper since 1989, has been charged with endangering the welfare of children and harassment and is scheduled to appear for court in January.
