LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - A Lincoln police officer who resigned while under investigation for allegedly assaulting a 51-year-old man while working off-duty at a Lincoln hospital has pleaded not guilty.
Benjamin Rieker, 32, entered the written plea before he was set to appear in court on Wednesday, the Lincoln Journal Star reported. He has been charged with third-degree assault and false reporting, both misdemeanors.
Officials have said Rieker resigned Jan. 26, days before he was criminally charged.
The charges were brought after investigators deemed Rieker had been working security at a Lincoln hospital Oct. 31 while he was off duty. Rieker had brief contact with a 51-year-old man accused of creating a disturbance in the emergency room, police said. Investigators said Rieker later found the man after he had been discharged from the hospital and shoved the older man unprovoked, causing the man to fall and hit his head.
Police said the man refused medical treatment for the fall. Rieker was placed on leave shortly after the incident.
Rieker had been on the force for about 18 months before he resigned, officials said.
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