It was caught on the video camera in the police department's booking room
HAMILTON, Ohio - A Tri-State law enforcement officer has been acquitted of all charges after he was accused of repeatedly assaulting a 62-year-old handcuffed man.
Stephen Heffernan, 43, a Hamilton police officer since 2015, was indicted earlier this year on four misdemeanor counts of assault. Heffernan was suspended nearly a month without pay after an internal investigation found he used “unnecessary or unwarranted violence” with Michael Yordy on Sept. 24, 2025, police records show. The officer took the man into custody after spotting him walking outside earlier that day and arrested him on an outstanding bench warrant for failing to pay municipal court fines.
The video shows Heffernan and Yordy in what investigators described as a “visibly agitated exchange,” police records show. Heffernan was accused of slamming the handcuffed man into a cinder block wall twice and then slamming him to the ground. That’s when Yordy’s head hit the bottom of a long concrete desk, and he was knocked out cold, according to the video.
Officer Stephen Heffernan is accused of assaulting Michael Yordy, 62, while Yordy was handcuffed in the Hamilton Police Department's booking room on Sept. 24, 2025. He was taken by ambulance to Bethesda North Hospital, police records show. A scan of his brain revealed no traumatic injury, but it took 14 staples to close the large gash in his head, according to the police report. Hamilton police initially charged Yordy with assaulting Heffernan, but that case was dismissed, court records show.
Just under two weeks later, Yordy agreed to accept $10,000 to release all claims against the city and police, according to a copy of the contract he signed. Heffernan signed a disciplinary agreement two weeks after the incident, on Oct. 8, 2025, accepting responsibility for violating prisoner handling rules, other public police records show. He also agreed to serve a 20-day suspension and complete remedial training within 60 days.
In addition, he was put on extra-duty suspension for six months and had to participate in behavioral management counseling through the Employee Assistance Program. He was back to work when a Butler County grand jury indicted him on Feb. 27, but was put on paid administrative leave that same day. Butler County Prosecutor Mike Gmoser found out about the incident through the media and clearly faulted how the city handled it.
He personally wrote the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation late last year and asked them to review the use of force, state records show. BCI did and turned its investigation over to the prosecutor’s office, which took it to the grand jury last month.
“The grand jury determined it was assault,” Gmoser told FOX19 NOW in an interview the day Officer Heffernan was indicted. “I’m saying it was excessive force. ”The Ohio Attorney General’s Special Prosecution section agreed to serve as a special prosecutor in that case, then asked BCI to review the use of force, according to a BCI spokesman.1 dead, 1 injured in I-480 motorcycle crashCookbook Club interview on Taste Buds! Chef discusses most argued about dishes
Fox19 19 Fox News Channel Cincinnati Hamilton Police Excessive Force Officer Stephen Heffernan Suspension Hamilton Justice Center Incident Police Disciplinary Action Hamilton Police Internal Investigation Video Shows Jail Altercation Hamilton Officer Stephen Heffernan Is On Paid Admi Stephen Heffernan Stephen Heffernan Indicted Stew Mathews Special Prosecutors From The Hamilton County Prose
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Pennsylvania man arrested after allegedly assaulting minor at parkA 36-year-old man was arrested after police said he punched a juvenile several times during an incident earlier this month.
Read more »
Video shows suburban man fatally shot by ISP during struggle in ChicagoIllinois State Police released video of a fatal officer-involved shooting on Chicago's South Side last month that left a suburban man dead after a struggle with officers.
Read more »
Florida Daycare Worker Allegedly Beat 3-Month-Old Because She Was Having ‘Personal Issues’Daycare worker LaKayla E. Hamilton has been arrested for allegedly beating an infant because of personal issues that were intensified by a text message
Read more »
Minnesota county charges an ICE officer in a nonfatal shooting during Trump's immigration crackdownA Minnesota county prosecutor has charged an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in the nonfatal shooting of a Venezuelan man during the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in the state.
Read more »
Minnesota county charges an ICE officer in a nonfatal shootingA Minnesota prosecutor on Monday announced charges against an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in the nonfatal shooting of a Venezuelan man during th
Read more »
ICE officer charged in shooting of Venezuelan man during Minnesota immigration crackdownThe shooting occurred during Operation Metro Surge.
Read more »