DC security guard pleads guilty to stomping on a citizen's face during a 2023 arrest 

WASHINGTON - Bridgette O. Robertson pleaded guilty to violating the constitutional rights of a detained citizen by stomping on her face in June 2023, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Derris Pirro announced on Tuesday. 

U.S. District Judge Dabney L. Friedrich scheduled a sentencing for Oct. 21, 2025 following Robertson's guilty plea. The defendant faces a potential penalty of up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. 

What we know:

According to court documents, on June 24, 2023, Roberston was employed by Specific Protection Services, LLC., as a Special Police Officer (SPO). She was licensed in the District of Columbia on the day of the incident.

Robertson was assigned to provide security services at a McDonald’s restaurant on the 3900 block of Minnesota Ave, NE. At about 3:30 p.m. Roberston entered a verbal altercation with a customer that escalated into a physical altercation.

Metropolitan Police Department officers responded to the scene and controlled the patron as they remained prone on the ground. Robertson stepped over the patron and stomped on their face. The stomp led to bleeding and caused pain to the patron. 

The stomp was without legal justification and violated the individual's constitutional rights. 

Dig deeper:

The U.S. Attorney's Office reviews the police-involved use of force to determine if enough evidence exists to judge if officers violated federal criminal civil rights or District of Columbia laws. 

Prosecutors must be able to prove that involved officers willfully used excessive force than what was necessary and acted deliberately with specific intent to do something the law prohibits to prove civil rights violations.