Law enforcement in Louisiana used a suspect’s head as a punching bag during an arrest in broad daylight on a public street — and the vicious beatdown was all caught on video.

Check out the wild footage, obtained by TMZ … two cops are trying to restrain the man who is lying on his side on the the ground in Harvey, LA, in the New Orleans metro area, around 6:30 PM Thursday.

As you can see … one the officers is kneeling down to cuff the man while the other cop is standing over him during the struggle.

We don’t know yet what led up to the caught-on-camera police assault … but eyewitnesses told us the man’s face was bloody, although it was unclear the extent of his injuries.

Witnesses also told TMZ … 7 to 8 police cars arrived on scene as officers handcuffed the man and eventually placed him inside one of the patrol vehicles, whisking him away.

The helicopter that crashed into the Hudson River was literally falling apart in mid-air … with a new angle of the incident showing multiple mechanical pieces flying off the chopper into the river.

Watch the clip — recorded by CCTV cameras — of the Thursday afternoon crash … the helicopter is flying along when what appear to be huge pieces of machinery, probably the rotor blades, come off, plummeting toward the Hudson and causing the helicopter to fall like a stone from the sky.

While the majority of the helicopter causes a huge splash, the other pieces cause smaller disturbances in the water — though, these pieces of the helicopter must have been quite large to cause such splashes.

As we told you … New York Helicopter Tour CEO Michael Roth says the helicopter was heading back to base to refuel when the crash occurred — killing all six people onboard.

The pilot’s name has not been released yet … but, the other five passengers were technology company Siemens executive Agustín Escobar, his wife Merce Camprubi Montal and their three young children. They were reportedly visiting the city from Spain.

Photos of the family — taken just before the crash — show a happy, smiling group … ready for the flight.

The man who attacked Steve Buscemi on a New York City street last year reportedly offered an apology while being sentenced in the case this week … though he tacked a caveat onto his mea culpa.

Clifton Williams — the 51-year-old man who punched Buscemi in an east Manhattan neighborhood last May — was sentenced to six months in jail, plus five years’ probation for attacking Buscemi and another individual on the same day.

Williams pleaded guilty to the two attacks last month, and he apologized in court according to the New York Post … though he did seem to indicate something went down between him and Buscemi to provoke the attack.

Remember … Buscemi revealed he was attacked last year — with a dude walking up and clocking him before taking off.

Video of Buscemi taken moments before the attack shows him having a seemingly normal day … saying a quick word to a woman before crossing the street — where Williams then apparently sucker-punched him.

Clifton was arrested for the crime at a New York City homeless shelter a few days after the attack happened.