Philadelphia cop charged with roughing up Iraq vet who recorded his outburst with phone

A Philadelphia police officer was charged Wednesday in connection with an incident last year involving an Iraq War veteran.

Officer Kevin Corcoran, 33, was patrolling Center City about 2 a.m. last March 31 when a group of pedestrians yelled that he had made an illegal turn.

Corcoran, a nine-year veteran, got out of his police SUV and began arguing with the pedestrians, and several onlookers began recording him on their cell phones.

The officer is accused of slapping a phone from Roderick King’s hands and cursing at him, saying, “Don’t f*cking touch me.”

He continued walking toward King, who investigators said kept his hands in front of him and never touched the officer.

Corcoran shoved the Iraq veteran against the side of his SUV, handcuffed him, and threw him into the back of his cruiser.

The officer told King he had been arrested for public intoxication, but prosecutors said Corcoran hadn’t prepared any of the required paperwork for the arrest and had no evidence he was intoxicated.

King told the officer he was a war veteran and had never been arrested, and Corcoran released him without charges.

Prosecutors said King had not criticized the officer’s driving but his friends had.

Corcoran turned himself in Wednesday morning on charges of false imprisonment, obstructing administration of law, and official oppression.

King sued the city in May for more than $1 million in civil-rights violations.