North Carolina Cops Beating Suspect on Video Remain on Active Duty

Cops in North Carolina can apparently beat the crap out of a suspect on video and go to work like nothing happened ... because that's what is playing out right now in Greensboro.

Folks are outraged over a clip that's going viral ... it shows at least three officers using force on a Black man they have pinned to the ground, and it looks like one cop has a knee near the man's neck.

A Greensboro Police Department spokesperson tells TMZ ... the officers in the video remain on active duty.

The video shows one officer raining blows down on the subject ... though cops say he's punching the man's back shoulder area to get him to release an arm.

Greensboro PD says the video shows an arrest they made this past Sunday night ... cops say they were on a proactive patrol when they spotted the man in the video -- 37-year-old Nathaniel Williams -- sitting in the driver's seat of a car in a parking lot, with weed on his lap.

Cops say they ordered Williams out of the car, but he refused multiple commands ... and officers ultimately removed him from the car and placed him in handcuffs.

Police say Williams was able to get one of his hands out of the cuffs, and they say he proceeded to assault one of the officers. Cops say a struggle ensued, with Williams ending up on the ground and tucking an arm under his body to avoid getting cuffed.

Cops say that's why the officer is on video hitting him ... they described the blows as "suprascapular strikes to his back shoulder area to get him to release his arm."

Greensboro PD says Williams was arrested and charged with two felony counts of assault on a law enforcement officer, one felony count of destruction of evidence, and 5 misdemeanors ... including possession of marijuana -- yes, weed is still illegal in North Carolina.