Off-duty New Orleans cops beat the hell out of Hispanic man for wearing camouflage

Two off-duty New Orleans police officers brutally beat a Hispanic man they accused of being a "fake" American for wearing camouflage clothing.

George Gomez was hospitalized after the two rookie police officers attacked him early Tuesday outside the Mid-City Yacht Club bar, and he said the pair questioned his immigration status because he was wearing a camouflage shirt and pants, reported The Advocate.

"He asked me if I was American," Gomez said. "I told him yes, and he got mad because he said I was fake."

The 36-year-old Gomez, who described himself as a U.S. native who was raised in Honduras before returning to New Orleans, served in the Louisiana National Guard, but he said the off-duty officers weren't satisfied with his explanations.

Gomez said the pair followed him out of the bar, stopped him from driving away and violently beat him.

The officers -- John Galman and Spencer Sutton -- called police afterward and claimed Gomez followed them in his truck and threatened them with a "heavy walking stick," which he uses due to back problems.

Police superintendent Michael Harrison said video evidence and eyewitness statements “clearly” showed Galman and Sutton were the aggressors.

Galman and Sutton were charged with simple battery and dismissed from the police department.

The rookie officers cannot appeal the dismissal because they had not yet completed a probationary period after graduating from the police academy in December.