St. Joseph officer pleads guilty to misdemeanor assault

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – A St. Joseph police officer pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor assault charge and resigned from the department after admitting that he struck a handcuffed suspect several times.

James Langston entered the plea to fourth-degree assault on Monday. Buchanan County Prosecutor Ron Holliday said the plea deal required Langston to resign from the police force, effective immediately.

He also must turn in his peace officer’s license to the state within 10 days and serve two years of supervised probation.

Court documents say Langston was helping to arrest Navada McCoy on April 6.

He reportedly struck McCoy several times with his hand while McCoy was handcuffed and not resisting arrest.