LAFAYETTE, LA—United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a former Iberia Parish Sheriff’s deputy was sentenced to serve one day in prison, one year of supervised release, 200 hours of community service and one year of location monitoring for striking a handcuffed man.

Cody Laperouse, 29, of New Iberia, La., was sentenced by U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick Hanna on one count of violating an individual’s civil rights by use of excessive force. He was also ordered to take anger management classes and pay a $2,000 fine. According to evidence presented at the March 24, 2015 guilty plea, Laperouse, while acting as a deputy of the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office on September 29, 2013, struck a man who was under arrest and on the ground with his hands cuffed behind his back. Laperouse was one of several officers tasked with dispersing a large crowd around 1:40 a.m. that had gathered after the close of the Sugar Cane Festival in New Iberia. The crowd was asked to disperse, and the victim was arrested during this time. The victim was instructed to lie flat on the ground in a face-down position, but instead remained on his side and did not comply with the instructions. Laperouse struck the victim twice, using excessive force.

The FBI and Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office Internal Affairs Division conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph T. Mickel and Jamilla A. Bynog prosecuted the case.