By Corey Saunders
csaunders@abc6.com
Brutal details of an alleged attack on a 9-year-old by her big brother, who is a police officer, are coming out. Patrick Cahill, a Woonsocket police officer, has been suspended from work after being charged with attacking his little sister.
Police say Cahill and his little sister were inside their parents' house on Newport Street in Woonsocket, when Cahill's little sister asked him if she could go outside to play. The 9-year-old then told police Cahill started yelling at her, so she ran upstairs and used a door up there to go outside. When she got outside, the girl said tried to get in a car in the driveway to escape from Cahill, because he was chasing her.
The girl then told police Cahill pulled her by the hair, trying to bring her back inside. Once they got inside, she says Cahill threw her on the couch, put his arm around her chin, started squeezing hard, and then strangled her. Cahill allegedly told the girl, "You're not going to tell me what to do. You're not the boss." The girl started crying and said she had trouble breathing after the incident.
Officer Patrick Cahill was in court Tuesday to be arraigned on felony assault charges. Cahill was released on $5,000 personal recognizance and he was suspended without pay.
