A Pennsylvania state trooper was placed on unpaid leave for allegedly pepper-spraying his girlfriend's 13-year-old son after he wouldn't get out of bed before school, WRAL TV reported.
Trooper Ernest Boatright is scheduled for a Jan. 22 preliminary hearing on charges of child endangerment and harassment.
Court records say that Boatright claimed to pepper-spray two cats on an enclosed porch while the 13-year-old boy said he sprayed it in his room while he was still in bed -- and not for the first time.
The criminal complaint also states the boy immediately began coughing, sneezing, and suffered from a runny nose and eyes, making him aware that he was pepper-sprayed since he claimed to developed those symptoms from previous incidents.
Boatright has not commented on the issue but his lawyer said he denies all charges.
"Trooper Boatright vehemently denies the charges that have been filed against him. He is very much looking forward to the opportunity to defend himself and clear his name," said the trooper's attorney, Matthew Zatko.
Boatright has been a trooper with the Pennsylvania State Police since 1989 and was recently covering the New Stanton barracks. Because of the charges against him, he has been placed on leave without pay.
The trooper is from Penn Hills and the boy lives by Uniontown.
In 2011, police officers in Colorado made headlines for using pepper spray on an 8-year-old elementary school student after he threatened to harm his his teachers.
