Christopher Pullease: Sunrise police sergeant seen choking female officer in viral video removed from supervisory duties

Christopher Pullease, a police sergeant from Sunrise city, was recently relieved from his supervisory duties for choking another female officer during an encounter on November 19, 2021.

A bodycam footage documenting the incident recently surfaced online and went viral on social media. Pullease can be seen holding an unidentified female officer’s throat and slamming her into a police van in the video.

The incident reportedly occurred when a female officer attempted to stop an ongoing altercation between Pullease and an arrested suspect. The questionable behaviour led to the sergeant’s removal from his official position and demotion to a desk job.

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A look into the Christopher Pullease choking incident

In November 2021, officers from the City of Sunrise Police Department arrived at a convenience store in Sunset Strip to arrest Jean Bernard Similien on charges of alleged aggravated battery.

Officers reportedly struggled to place Similien inside a police car when Sergeant Christopher Pullease engaged in a verbal altercation with the suspect. The latter even pulled out a pepper spray can when a nearby female officer intervened to prevent the situation from escalating further.

Bodycam footage showed the female officer grabbing Sergeant Pullease by the belt in an attempt to pull him away from the suspect. In response, the sergeant turned around and aggressively held the officer by her neck. He continued to push her backwards until she slammed into a police van.

Christopher Pullease then walked away and boarded another police vehicle while yelling at the police officer. According to Local 10, Sunrise Police Chief Anthony Rosa issued an official statement regarding the situation and called Pullease’s behaviour “inappropriate and unprofessional”:

“Once the suspect was inside the patrol vehicle, the sergeant approached and engaged in a verbal altercation with the suspect in a manner that I feel was inappropriate and unprofessional. This supervisor escalated the encounter instead of de-escalating an emotionally charged situation.”

Chief Rosa also spoke to 7 News Miami and praised the unnamed female officer for her decision to intervene in the situation:

“So I’m very proud of this police officer. She took some definitive action. I can only imagine what she must be feeling. She’s a newer officer, and he’s a very senior sergeant.”

Rosa even mentioned that he found Sergeant Pullease’s move “disgusting.” Meanwhile, public defender Gordon Weekes reportedly wrote to the chief questioning his decision to demote Pullease to desk duty instead of arresting him for his behaviour.

In response, Rosa mentioned that the case is currently under investigation, and he is unable to provide details on the situation due to the ongoing enquiry:

“So there’s some details of the investigation that I’ve not disclosed, that I’m unable to disclose right now, and if any of the information that comes up during the investigation rises to a level of criminal behavior or criminal conduct, then we’ll address it appropriately.”

Christopher Pullease is a 21-year veteran of the police force and has reportedly faced two allegations of using excessive force in the past. However, he was cleared on both charges.