Alabama cop charged with handcuffing girlfriend and throwing her down stairs — weeks after similar attack

An Alabama police officer was arrested for allegedly handcuffing his girlfriend and throwing her down a flight of stairs.

Officer Adam Voss, of Birmingham police, was charged with third-degree domestic violence/assault early Saturday in connection with the attack, but court records show a history of domestic abuse, reported AL.com.

A protection order issued against the 36-year-old Voss accuses the officer of slamming the woman's face on the floor, restraining her in handcuffs, refusing to let her leave the house or call 911, and throwing her into multiple walls before shoving her down the stairs.

The woman said Voss had also attacked her in a similar incident on New Year's Day.

"He punched my face, threw me into the Christmas tree, busted my nose and blackened my eye," she told investigators.

Voss was ordered to turn over all of his guns to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and to move out of the Trussville home he shares with his girlfriend and her two children, who are each younger than 10.

The 12-year Birmingham police veteran is a patrol officer on the city's west side, but he previously worked in the Vice and Narcotics Unit, the website reported.

Voss, who was released on bond, has been placed on administrative leave while the criminal charges are pending.

Another Birmingham police officer, Demarcus Blanding, was arrested several weeks ago after investigators said he fired a gunshot at his wife's tires as she stood next to her car during an argument.

Blanding was also charged with third-degree domestic violence/harassment.

A spokesman for the police department said the cases were "very unfortunate," but he cautioned against drawing any conclusions until "both sides" could tell their stories in court.

It's something we're not excited about because domestic violence is a serious incident,'' said Lt. Sean Edwards. "We want everybody to know and understand that nobody is above the law and anytime we have our own have an incident like this, we treat it like we would treat anybody else.

Research has shown that police officers are more likely to be accused of domestic violence than NFL players.

Two studies have found that at least 40 percent of police officers' families experience domestic violence, compared to 10 percent of all families.

A third study of older, more experienced police officers found a rate of 24 percent.

Watch this video report posted online by WBMA: