Former Alabama Sheriff’s Deputy Indicted for Using Excessive Force on Suspect
According to court filings, a grand jury has indicted a former north Alabama sheriff’s deputy on assault charges after he allegedly used excessive force while detaining a suspect during 2022.
A Colbert County grand jury indicted Eric Reece Puryear, 24, who was fired from the Colbert County Sheriff’s Office following the alleged Feb. 23, 2022 incident, for allegedly assaulting Robert Dowdy Hand.
Colbert County Sheriff Eric Balentine stated that he learned about the incident and another alleged case of excessive force by Puryear in December, after taking office in January.
According to the sheriff, Balentine then launched an internal investigation, which resulted in Puryear’s firing a week later.
Balentine said, “We viewed all the body cam footage. It was not favorable for this deputy. It was clear to us that he had violated 7 departmental policies and we had to take action as soon as possible.”
Balentine went on to add that Puryear’s firing was “about being transparent and letting our citizens know that we don’t tolerate certain types of behavior, and this is one of those incidents and we dealt with it accordingly, in my opinion.”
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