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Trial postponed for officers accused of slapping student in viral video

Teen in video has robbery case pending
Posted at 9:25 AM, Nov 16, 2016
and last updated 2016-11-16 18:04:31-05

The trial for two Baltimore school police officers accused of slapping a student at Reach Partnership School was postponed Wednesday.

Anthony Spence, 44, and Saverna Bias, 53, face second-degree assault and misconduct in office charges stemming from the March incident, which was caught on camera.

RELATED: 2 Baltimore City School Police officers caught on video face multiple charges

Cell phone video circulated showing Spence slapping and kicking a 16-year-old student, while Bias looks on.

According to charging documents, Bias said, "You need to smack him, because he's got too much mouth," right before the confrontation.

The trial was initially scheduled to take place Wednesday, but was instead postponed because the teen involved in the video has since been charged in connection with an armed robbery at Patterson Park and is awaiting trial in that case.

RELATED: School police officer accused of slapping student in viral video no longer facing felony charge

City police investigated the incident with help from the Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office. Spence initially faced a second degree child abuse charge.

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