A UNION boss has defended cops who pepper sprayed a screaming nine-year-old girl in the face – saying: "It could have been worse".
Disturbing bodycam footage showed officers handcuffing the "suicidal" child face down in the snow, then spraying her when she refused to get in their car in Rochester, New York.
The distressed girl can be heard screaming for her father as a male officer wrestles with her then blasts her in the eyes with the stinging spray.
It sparked an outcry, and the city's police chief and mayor both condemned the officers' actions.
But Rochester police union president Michael Mazzeo defended them at a press conference last night.
He said: "They were trying to get her into the car. They made a decision, he made a decision there, that he thought was the best action to take.
"It resulted in no injury to her. Had they had to go and push further and use more force, there's a good chance she could have been hurt worse."
Mazzeo said the officers were told the girl was suicidal and that she threatened to harm others.
He added: "There was a short blast of Cap-Stun. It worked. It calmed her down. It got her in and they were still trying to get information from her at that point.
"We're not saying that's the best answer or the right answer. Nobody has those answers."
A total of nine police cars responded to a family dispute on Friday.
The girl’s mother, who was not identified, is seen in the footage arguing with her daughter, who becomes increasingly agitated.
One video shows the youngster running from police and then dropping to the snow as a cop tries to bring her back.
In another video the girl can be heard screaming: “I want my dad… I ain’t going nowhere. I want my dad… I’m not getting in no car until I see my dad.”
“Stop or you’re going to get yourself hurt,” a cop responds at one point during the ordeal.
A female officer is heard telling the girl she’ll look for her dad but asks her to get inside the car to keep warm.
But the girl continues screaming again, an officer says “Just spray her at this point,” and is seen spraying the girl.
“Please wipe my eyes,” the girl screams. “Wipe my eyes, please.”
Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren said she was disturbed by the videos.
She told a press conference yesterday: "I have a ten-year-old child, so she’s a child, she’s a baby, This video, as a mother, is not anything you want to see.
“I’m very concerned about how this young girl was handled by our police department.
“It is clear from the video we need to do more in support of our children and families.”
Police Chief Cynthia Herriott-Sullivan said: “I’m not going to stand here and tell you that for a nine-year-old to have to be pepper-sprayed is OK. It’s not.
“I don’t see that as who we are as a department.
“And we’re going to do the work we have to do to ensure that these kinds of things don’t happen.”
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