BATON ROUGE - A veteran Baton Rouge Police officer has been put on administrative leave, following an arrest for breaking into the home of his estranged wife and beating her.

Summed up in two pages, the arrest records for twelve-year Baton Rouge Police Officer Sirtelli Dorsey outline the harrowing incident that led to his arrest Thursday morning.

According to records, Dorsey forced himself inside the back door of the woman’s home late Wednesday night. The victim told police that Dorsey pushed her; she ran into her bedroom and locked herself inside.

Patti Freeman serves as Executive Director of Iris Domestic Violence Center and spent decades with the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office investigating domestic violence cases.

"I think law enforcement should be held to a higher standard because they're charged with the responsibility to protect and serve the public, and that should start at home," Freeman said.

While locked outside of the victim’s bedroom, documents describe Dorsey beating on and then kicking in the door. That’s when, according to the victim, the abuse continued; Dorsey refused to allow her to leave and said he would kill her if she told police. When she reported the abuse, the victim had visible bruises.

"His uniform does not make him any less or more of an abuser,” Freeman said. “That's a person who violated another person, or is alleged to have, that has nothing to do with law enforcement.”

But Dorsey told police that while he admits to being at the victim’s house, he did not physically attack her. Freeman says her goal is to make the victim feel comfortable, providing a safe place to rest, without fear of retaliation.

"Making a safety plan now, while an abuser is booked, is critical," she said.