Buffalo Police Brutality?

[Paulo]

Just don’t piss off the BPD and end up like this guy:

[neonglh]

Geez. I was just about to post how much bullshit that was, and how I didn’t see anything wrong by the officers in that video. It’s so easy for the internet to show off the arrest, but not what leads up to it.

Then, I saw the last 5 seconds, and that cop had no right to hit the guy while he was cuffed like that. Has that been in the news? That is what gets police in trouble, they MUCH tone it back down once the situation is under control. Once you let emotions take over, you risk your job, freedom, and reputation.

[tpgsr]

@neonglh

Geez. I was just about to post how much bullshit that was, and how I didn’t see anything wrong by the officers in that video. It’s so easy for the internet to show off the arrest, but not what leads up to it.

Then, I saw the last 5 seconds, and that cop had no right to hit the guy while he was cuffed like that. Has that been in the news? That is what gets police in trouble, they MUCH tone it back down once the situation is under control. Once you let emotions take over, you risk your job, freedom, and reputation.

I was thinking the same thing watching it. The cops HAD to wrestle him to the ground and subdue him. Then the punch and kick, WTF. I really hope that the “investigation” leads to strong disciplinary action up to and including him being fired. I would rather he just gets un paid suspension and counseling but I would be ok with termination.

[1QIKZ]

@neonglh

Geez. I was just about to post how much bullshit that was, and how I didn’t see anything wrong by the officers in that video. It’s so easy for the internet to show off the arrest, but not what leads up to it.

Then, I saw the last 5 seconds, and that cop had no right to hit the guy while he was cuffed like that. Has that been in the news? That is what gets police in trouble, they MUCH tone it back down once the situation is under control. Once you let emotions take over, you risk your job, freedom, and reputation.

Goes with your avatar.

[JayS]

Based on all the comments I’ve been seeing on the news and FB I really expected more than a couple slaps and probably the lightest kick ever caught on camera.

Doesn’t make it right but I was expecting more of a Rodney King style beatdown based on the outrage.

[neonglh]

I like the comments in that video, people complaining that knee strikes are excessive use of force. Let’s put the people commenting in the officers shoes, and let them try to gain control of the suspect without the use of strikes. The only part of that video that is likely excessive use of force is the slap and kick at the end, and like Jay said, it was not that bad. 3 officers saw jail time in the Rodney King beating, but that was many PR-24 strikes after compliance was gained.

[llink78]

Checked out the guys FB yesterday. Tons of weed and stacks of cash. Seems like another gangster wannabe getting what was coming. But yet the slaps at the end were not called for.

[BOBBYGRV]

For the most part, all I’ve seen are like minded people, similar to the guy being arrested complaining about police brutality and how they hate police. I have zero sympathy for this guy. Don’t turn yourself into a criminal and give the cops a reason to throw you in handcuffs and you won’t have to worry about cops beating the shit out of you when you resist them.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not defending the cops action’s at all, but do I think this guy is a victim?? Not at all.

[Paulo]

Fuck, sorry for threadjacking this.

Can someone split the thread up?

EDIT - Thanks @Onyx_Z32 :tup:

[tpgsr]

Here is an update:
All 6 officers on leave and one of them, the scumbag that hit a cuffed prisoner, is suspended without pay.

http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/buffalo/focus-in-brutality-case-is-on-3-of-the-6-officers-as-others-are-expected-to-be-cleared-soon-20140429

@Buffalo News"

The investigation into police brutality that came to light with a YouTube video over the weekend focuses on three officers, while three others soon may be exonerated, authorities said Tuesday.
Officer John A. Cirulli has been identified as the officer punching and kicking John T. Willet, 22, after he was handcuffed and lying on the ground.
The Police Department said Cirulli has been suspended from duty without pay for “violations of various departmental rules and regulations.”
Officers Lindsay A. Laracuente-Zgoda and Lamar M. McCulley are identified as the officers standing above Willet as he was beaten.
The other three officers walked away before the beating occurred and did not witness it, police officials say. They were identified as Officers Nicholas A. Militello, Dennis R. Gilbert and Brian O. Griffin.
Cirulli placed his knee either on Willet’s head or neck, authorities said, as three officers struggled to handcuff Willet, who had led police on a car and foot chase in the city’s Riverside section on the night of April 19.
Several police officers who spoke on condition of anonymity, because departmental regulations prevent them from talking to reporters, say Cirulli’s actions were unacceptable and may have placed the careers of other officers in jeopardy.
Officers are legally obligated to report instances of police brutality, and that does not appear to have occurred in this case.
In addition to the YouTube video posted Saturday, at least two other videos exist of the incident, one from a police surveillance camera and the other from a store in the area.
All six officers were placed on administrative leave Monday as Internal Affairs continued its investigation, but Gilbert, Griffin and Militello soon may be allowed to return to work.
For Cirulli, it’s a different story. He has been suspended without pay.
The video that two eyewitnesses recorded on a cellphone at about 10:30 p.m. April 19 at Philadelphia and Ontario streets appears to be a convincing piece of evidence against Cirulli, according to authorities.
U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. said Tuesday that his office is initiating a review of the incident to determine if Willet’s civil rights were violated.
“Our office is going to work with our federal partners to determine whether or not there was a violation civil rights laws,” Hochul said. “This office has taken a zero-tolerance approach to instances of police brutality over the past several years. We have convicted five officers and deputies of civil rights violations where the officer crossed the line and used excessive force.”
Erie County District Attorney Frank A. Sedita III declined to say whether his office is also investigating the case but added that he has been in contact with Buffalo Police Commissioner Daniel Derenda.
“I reached out to the Buffalo police commissioner first thing Monday morning and offered the assistance of my office,” Sedita said.
Derenda and Mayor Byron W. Brown both stated Monday that inappropriate police conduct will not be tolerated. The commissioner declined to comment Tuesday on the status of the internal investigation, except to say it continues to progress at a fast pace. The fact that Willet, of Buffalo, is accused of having drugs in his possession – heroin, crack cocaine, and marijuana – does not excuse the use of excessive force, police officials said, explaining that once a suspect is handcuffed, physical force no longer is permitted.
Police Officer Kevin M. Kennedy, president of the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association, the union representing officers, declined to comment.
Rodney O. Personius, a top Buffalo defense lawyer, has confirmed that he was contacted by Cirulli and said that they intend to meet.
Cirulli, 31, joined the Police Department in 2008 and has worked in various districts throughout the city. In his six years as an officer, his name has appeared in several newspaper articles involving significant arrests involving robbery, car theft and assault.
Part of the investigation also focuses on why Gilbert and Griffin were in the Northwest District when they work in the Ferry-Fillmore District. These two officers, who patrol in an unmarked car, have been involved in numerous high-profile arrests, including the arrest of a murder suspect in 2012. A year after that, Gilbert received a citation for bravery from the commissioner.
Gilbert, 48, also works as the head football coach at St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute in the Town of Tonawanda and is regarded as a role model for members of the team, according to William M. Collins, a close family friend and the principal of Travers Collins, a Buffalo marketing and communications company.
“From what I have been told by family members and people very close to Dennis, he and his partner walked away once the man was handcuffed and went and looked for evidence that the suspect was allegedly unloading from his pockets during the chase,” Collins said.
A graduate of St. Joe’s, Gilbert is in the high school’s athletic hall of fame and has served as the head football coach for several years. He joined the Police Department in 2007.
“He works the overnight shift so that he can serve as the coach in the day, and not only is he a great football coach, he is a great role model for these young men,” Collins said.
Robert T. Scott, president of the school, issued this statement Tuesday concerning Gilbert:
“We are aware that Mr. Gilbert has been placed on administrative leave along with five other Buffalo police officers who were allegedly present at the incident occurring April 19. It is our understanding that this action is standard practice for an Internal Affairs Division investigation.
“While St. Joe’s does not have any information to conclude that Mr. Gilbert acted inappropriately, we are monitoring this situation and will defer any action until the investigation is complete.”
Griffin, 39, joined the Police Department in 1999.
In 2008, McCulley, while off duty, fatally shot a teenager who placed a BB gun to his head and tried to rob him outside a gas station/mini-mart at East Delavan Avenue and Grider Street. Several months later, an Erie County grand jury cleared McCulley of wrongdoing.
Militello, 24, began his career in 2012. He is the son of Detective Charles G. Militello.
Laracuente-Zgoda, 30, also started with the police department in 2012 and is regarded by fellow officers as honest.
Standing in the pouring rain outside Police Headquarters downtown at noon Tuesday, group of 10 people protested police brutality.
Among them was a young man who identified himself only as “J.T.,” founder of the local chapter of Cop Block of Western New York, which placed the video onto the Internet on Saturday.
“I’ve had the video since Saturday. It was sent to me through a friend of a friend of Mr. Willet,” he said.
Asked what he thought of how the police responded, J.T. said, “I’m overly satisfied with how quickly the investigation has progressed.”
Derenda and the mayor were emailed copies of the video Friday, and the commissioner said he immediately directed Internal Affairs to begin an investigation.
Eleanor F. Dorritie, local organizer for the Buffalo chapter of the International Action Center, said she set up the protest to ensure public awareness.
“We want to make sure this doesn’t get swept under the rug,” Dorritie said. “I was outraged by what I saw on the video. We’re on this because there is a lot of evidence from people in the community, especially the black community, that police have been getting away with it for a very long time.”
Hochul, in speaking with The News, said that although his office aggressively pursues allegations of police brutality, he believes that “the vast majority of officers have demonstrated the highest level of professionalism here in Western New York.”

[Onyx_Z32]

Thread split.

[Paulo]

Well that’s interesting:

The other three officers walked away before the beating occurred and did not witness it, police officials say. They were identified as Officers Nicholas A. Militello, Dennis R. Gilbert and Brian O. Griffin.

[theblue]

^
lol

[Beck]

Wait, am I going to have to hear about something else on the news for the next 4 weeks other than the whereabouts of Jim Kelly and his family for the Easter Weekend?

[tpgsr]

@Beck

Wait, am I going to have to hear about something else on the news for the next 4 weeks other than the whereabouts of Jim Kelly and his family for the Easter Weekend?

Nope. The news definitely cares more about a retired football player with cancer than they do about human rights violations by public employees.

[JayS]

Maybe if they’d stop sensationalizing it a bit I’d give a damn. Throwing around words like “brutality” and “beating” over what was in the video is just stupid. Rodney King was a brutal beating. This is a case of minor excessive force.

And fuck this guy’s mom crying to every news station about the horror of watching her son get beaten. If you cared that much mom maybe you would have done more as you watched your piece of shit son selling drugs every day.

Discipline the cops involved and move on.

[BOBBYGRV]

@tpgsr

Nope. The news definitely cares more about a retired football player with cancer than they do about human rights violations by public employees.

While I agree that the cops force was excessive, let’s not forget that this guy did flee from the cops because he had drugs on him and he did initially resist arrest. It’s not like some poor innocent person was assaulted by a police officer. This guy was/is a criminal and deserves very little pity from anybody.

[Jim1234664]

yeah this guy sucks and IMO he deserved it, this wasn’t a case of someone dealing a little weed.

[ProgRocker]

@BOBBYGRV

While I agree that the cops force was excessive, let’s not forget that this guy did flee from the cops because he had drugs on him and he did initially resist arrest. It’s not like some poor innocent person was assaulted by a police officer. This guy was/is a criminal and deserves very little pity from anybody.

But he’s a good boy

[tpgsr]

@BOBBYGRV

While I agree that the cops force was excessive, let’s not forget that this guy did flee from the cops because he had drugs on him and he did initially resist arrest. It’s not like some poor innocent person was assaulted by a police officer. This guy was/is a criminal and deserves very little pity from anybody.

Correct. He fled and he is a criminal. I will not deny those facts at all. I do not in anyway feel bad for this guy. What I do disagree with is a police officer kicking a cuffed suspect. If I walked on that scene and kicked that guy I would be arrested on assault charges. The officer that kicked him has not been arrested on assault charges and he should be. I don’t think that they beat him and this is worthy of the hype, but it needs to be paid attention to as more and more the police are acting above the law. This is specifically the case when it relates to minorities in poor neighborhoods. Don’t believe me? STOP AND FRISK. That specifically was a program aimed at minorities and was a complete violation of their 4th amendment rights. I am going to stop at that so I don’t go into a 10 page rant.

• • • Updated - - -

@ProgRocker

But he’s a good boy

Said every mamma of every criminal arrested ever. lol

• • • Updated - - -

@Jim1234664

yeah this guy sucks and IMO he deserved it, this wasn’t a case of someone dealing a little weed.

He deserved to be kicked by someone sworn to uphold the law while he was detained and cuffed face down? The police are responsible for apprehending and charging him with a crime. It is the job of the courts to determine if the charges are legitimate and if he is guilty. Then and only then is a punishment to be handed down. That punishment will also cover his charge of resisting arrest and fleeing. The police can not allow their emotions to control their actions.