HOLDREGE, Neb. (AP) - A south-central Nebraska sheriff's deputy accused of giving a teenage girl a black eye has been acquitted of child abuse.
A six-person jury last week found Jamie Tilson, 32, found not guilty of misdemeanor counts of child abuse and third-degree assault, the Lincoln Journal Star reported.
The charges stemmed from a Sept. 3 incident in Holdrege in which Tilson sought to take away the teenage relative's phone. Arresting officers said in an affidavit that the teen kicked a hole in a wall and talked back to Tilson, who said he "went to slap" the girl in the mouth, but hit her in the eye when she flinched, causing a black eye.
The teen took a photo of her black eye and shared it on social media. She also missed two days of school. Upon returning to school, a school aide asked about the swollen eye and the teen claimed to have fallen, court documents said. A school nurse examined the eye, determined it was not caused by a fall and school officials called the state's child abuse hotline.
Tilson remains employed by the Phelps County Sheriff's Office.