Report from school resource officer who punched student is released

We’re finally getting the other side in a fight that went viral after it showed what appeared to be a school resource officer punching a 15-year-old girl at Coronado High School.

The Colorado Springs Police Department released the incident report from Nov, 20, after a public information request by KRDO.

Officer Adam Romine writes that with the large crowd he feared things were going to get out of control.

Romine notes that he was the only adult present as he tried breaking up a fight between two teenage girls.

“I was still alone while engaged in a physical confrontation with two subjects, the large crowd was closing in on me and the volume of the crowd was increasing,” Romine wrote. “…the situation appeared to be becoming hostile. I feared that either the students or I were more likely to be hurt the longer the confrontation continued.”

Romine said he struck 15-year-old Kaosha Neal with a closed fist on her left collar bone area. He said that stopped the fight immediately.

“I still don’t think its right for it to be justifiable,” Neal said.

Neal has said in repeated interviews that Romine hit her in the lower jaw.

“Do these people know what a punch looks like because I’ve got pictures, video, maybe they should go back and see it was a punch,” Neal said.

Neal said the officer should have pushed her away or held her back instead of punching her.

In his report, Romine says that a witness overheard who we assume is Neal because the name is retracted, telling her family that “the officer punched her in the throat.”

Hours after the fight Neal was talking to KRDO, seemingly favoring her jaw. She also went to the hospital for X-rays. Doctors told her it was bruised.

Romine closes out his report by saying, “It should be noted that ___ (Neal) was involved in a physical altercation prior to my interaction with her and that at no time did I make contact with or strike ___ (Neal) in the face.”

Romine has remained on the job at Coronado High since the fight. CSPD said there is an ongoing internal investigation into the incident.