Los Angeles police officers investigate a shooting in South Central Los Angeles on December 29, 2014. (Associated Press)
Two Boston police officers were hospitalized after they were attacked by six teenagers related to a person they were arresting, authorities said on Tuesday.
Boston Police Commissioner William Evans said the officers, a woman and a man, were "pretty banged up" in Monday's attack but recovering. Both were treated for undisclosed injuries and have been released from the hospital. Their names have not been made public.
Mayor Martin Walsh said he does not believe the assault has anything to do with rising tensions around the US over police conduct following the killings of unarmed black men in Missouri and New York City.
Evans said the officers went to an apartment in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood on Monday morning to serve a warrant on a 19-year-old man for defaulting on court appearances. Seven people were arrested in all, including the person police were originally seeking. He was identified by the district attorney's office as Woobenson Morisset.
Morisset and 18-year-old Lorcen Morisset, who is accused of participating in the attack, were scheduled for arraignment on Tuesday. It wasn't known if either one has a lawyer.
The other teens, a 17-year-old boy and girls aged 13, 14, 15, and 16, face assault and battery on a police officer, resisting arrest and other delinquency charges. In juvenile court on Tuesday, a judge set bail at $500 for the 17-year-old and $1 for the younger teens, with that amount to be posted only by their parents. The next court date for all five teens, who live in Dorchester, is February 12.
Police say Woobenson Morisset attacked the two officers when they confronted him in a rear stairwell.
The officers were about to handcuff Morisset when the other teens came to his aid and "kicked, punched, and choked" the officers. The officers used pepper spray to fight off the attackers until other officers arrived, but they never drew their guns.
Evans said he expected the officers would be out of work for some time. "It (the attack) stresses the dangers of our job everyday going into situations never knowing what will happen," he said.
The incident comes just days after two men opened fire on a police car patrolling a tough part of Los Angeles. The two officers inside were not injured and one was able to shoot back, authorities said on Monday. One suspect was later arrested and the other was on the loose.
Police have not yet determined a motive for Sunday night's shooting in South Los Angeles - an area plagued by gang violence - but said there were no indications it was linked to other attacks on police.