Salem Officer Arrested, Placed on Leave Following Excessive Force Allegations

[Story originally posted at 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 15. Updated at 1:30 p.m. on Jan. 16]


A Salem police officer has been arrested and placed on unpaid administrative leave following allegations that he used excessive force.

The Salem Police Department issued a press release Wednesday saying that it was notified by the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office on Oct. 23, 2013 that it was conducting an investigation into excessive force allegations against Salem Officer Joseph Freda.

Freda, 33, of Salem, was immediately placed on paid administrative leave and cooperated fully with the attorney general's investigation.

The Salem Police Department also conducted its own internal investigation, and upon completion of that investigation, Freda was placed on unpaid administrative leave pending an administrative hearing to be held next week.

Freda was arrested and booked without incident at 2:58 p.m. Wednesday at the Salem police station on an outside agency's warrant, according to Salem Police Department logs.

He was released on $2,5000 personal recognizance bail and is scheduled for arraignment at 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 24 in Salem District Court.

Freda's booking photo hasn't yet been made available to the public.

Attorney General Joseph A. Foster said in a separate press release that Freda was charged with two counts of simple assault stemming from the Oct. 6, 2013 arrest of Thomas Templeton, 39, of York, Maine. On Oct. 22, 2013, the Attorney General's Office was notified by New Hampshire State Police of the arrest of Templeton and the injuries he sustained during the arrest.

The Attorney General's Office said it commenced an immediate investigation, which led to Freda's arrest. The charges allege that while on duty, Freda "knowingly caused bodily injury to Templeton by striking Templeton in the head with a flashlight thereby causing lacerations, and that Freda knowingly caused unprivileged physical contact by stepping on Templeton’s hand when Templeton was seated on the ground with his hands handcuffed behind his back."

In its release, the Salem Police Department said it "does not tolerate excessive use of force from its Police Officers.

"The Salem Police Department has longstanding Policies and Procedures in place providing guidance for our officers," the release said. "The Salem Police Department provides comprehensive, ongoing, and mandatory training for all of its officers on all aspects of police activity, including training on arrest procedures and acceptable use of force. It is our expectation that these policies will be followed."

Salem Police said they will have no further comment due to the ongoing criminal investigation, and referred all further questions to the attorney general's office.