Rookie cop in hot water after video shows him slamming biker

By TAMER EL-GHOBASHY
DAILY NEWS POLICE BUREAU

Updated Tuesday, July 29th 2008, 3:13 AM

A rookie NYPD cop was stripped of his badge and gun Monday after a stunning video caught him slamming a bicyclist to the ground in an apparent unprovoked attack.

Officer Patrick Pogan, 22, of the Midtown South Precinct, was bounced to desk duty soon after the video of Friday's incident in Times Square appeared on YouTube.

"The video is bad - what can you say?" a police source said. The damning video not only revealed an out-of-the-blue attack but also seems to show Pogan lied about the incident in court papers.

Pogan was one of two cops at Seventh Ave. and 46th St. monitoring a Critical Mass bike rally when a swarm of cyclists rode by ringing their bells about 9:35 p.m. Without warning, Pogan, a former high school football offensive lineman, appears to single out one cyclist, jog toward the sidewalk and then slam his shoulder into the biker.

The impact sent Christopher Long, 29, crashing to the pavement in front of shocked onlookers.

"All of a sudden the cop picked this kid out and bodychecked him," said cyclist Craig Radhuber, 54, who was riding about 3 feet to the right of Long. "I couldn't believe what was going on."

When Long tried to get up, Pogan and his partner tackled him to the ground and tried to handcuff him, witnesses said. Long "was startled and shaken, and the officers were being really violent," said witness Bill DiPaola, director of Time's Up! an environmental group that supports Critical Mass.

Long, of Bloomfield, N.J., was arrested and charged with attempted assault, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. He declined to comment yesterday. His lawyer David Rankin said "the video speaks for itself" and said he may sue.

In court documents, Pogan said he saw Long weaving in and out of lanes and obstructing traffic before he ordered the cyclist to stop. The cop claimed Long deliberately drove his bike into him, sending both of them falling to the ground. Pogan claimed to have suffered cuts from the impact.

The video clearly shows Long trying to dodge Pogan, who appears to have remained upright the entire time.

Long, a grocer at the Union Square Green Market, has been described as an Army veteran and mild-mannered environmental activist. "He is a very well-meaning guy," said his boss, Morse Pitts, 56.

A law enforcement source said the charges against Long would likely "go away" and another source predicted Pogan would be fired.

Police spokesman Paul Browne said the incident is being investigated.

Pogan's father, a retired NYPD detective who worked on the Joint Terrorism Task Force, defended his son's actions last night. "You gotta do what you gotta do to make an arrest," said Patrick Pogan Sr., 51, who retired in 2002.

He said his son is the third generation of NYPD in the family. "I'm proud of my son. He's a good kid."

Critical Mass and Time's Up! - which advocate for environmental issues with the monthly protest ride - have long complained about NYPD harassment. Police officials said the groups disrupt traffic and lack permits.

"Cyclists here already face enough obstacles - law enforcement shouldn't be one of them," said City Councilman David Yassky (D-Brooklyn), a supporter of biker rights.

tel-ghobashy@nydailynews.com

With Alison Gendar, Wil Cruz, Edgar Sandoval and Simone Weichselbaum
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2008/07/28/2008-07-28_rookie_cop_in_hot_water_after_video_show.html

'Critical Mass' Bicyclist Assaulted By NYPD (VIDEO)

July 25 2008
Times Square NYC

Woman in Wheelchair Tased to death by FL police

The Florida Times-Union
February 13, 2007State rules Taser death homicide
By DANA TREENThe Times-Union

Ten shocks from a police Taser were enough to kill a wheelchair-bound Green Cove Springs woman whose death in a confrontation with two officers in April has been ruled a homicide but, according to prosecutors, justified.

Emily Marie Delafield, 56, was in poor physical and mental health but would not have died if she had not been shocked for a total of 121 seconds by two Green Cove Springs officers, according to the autopsy included in a State Attorney's Office report released Friday. Delafield called police to her house then confronted them with knives and a hammer.

Associate Medical Examiner Valerie Rao, who performed the autopsy in Jacksonville last year, said the Taser shocks were a "very small factor" in the death of Delafield, who was obese and had an enlarged heart and was confined to a wheelchair. But the Tasers were a contributing factor, she said.

"You can't ignore it," Rao said Monday.

In July, Rao listed homicide as the manner of death, according to the State Attorney's report. She described Delafield as a woman who was on a "precipice" health-wise and said Taser shocks could have impacted Delafield's breathing.

But the State Attorney's Office report said officers James Acres and Barbara Luedtke were justified in using the Tasers on Delafield after she threatened the officers in the street in front of her home on Harrison Street.

Though the report said the two officers were using what are considered non-lethal weapons in the face of knives and a hammer, the actions raise questions about whether the reaction was proper considering Delafield's physical condition, said a nephew, Ryan Delafield.

"She was a dead woman walking," he said Monday. "There was no way she was going to survive that."

On the day after the incident, Emily Delafield's brother, Arnett Chase, said he and other family members believed police acted properly and it was the least-dangerous way to stop her from hurting herself or others.

Until last week, Ryan Delafield said, he believed his aunt had been shocked about three times and is baffled at the police handling of the case. He said his aunt had a limited range of motion, was restricted to a motorized wheelchair and that police should have used other means to calm her.

"There are some questions," he said. "Why is the Taser used at all? The second question, 'Why so much?' "

Tasers deliver 50,000-volt jolts at low currents - generally considered safe but enough to disrupt the nervous system and disable a person temporarily.

Police knew Emily Delafield and had been at her house 28 times in the past, according to the state attorney's report. They knew of her mental health issues and had talked that day with family members who were concerned that she was not taking her medication for schizophrenia. Emily Delafield called police to say she believed her life was in danger and that her sister was trying to kill her, an accusation that was later ruled unsubstantiated, the report said.


Luedtke and Acres arrived at the house and decided not to use police batons or pepper spray on Delafield, who was on oxygen due to her medical condition. The officers discussed using Tasers with the family, including some who agreed with their use, authorities said. After a 13-minute standoff, Luedtke fired her Taser when Delafield raised the knife as if to throw it. When the shock did not appear to have an effect, Luedtke told investigators she recycled her Taser up to four times. Acres shocked Delafield two minutes later after Luedtke's shocks appeared not to be having an effect.

Later examination of the two weapons shows Luedtke's Taser was fired nine times and Acres' once for a total of 121 seconds.

Delafield collapsed several minutes after being shocked and died after she was taken to Orange Park Medical Center.

Ryan Delafield, who was not there when his aunt was shocked, said he questions why police supervisors were not called or why other tactics were not used. The police station is about three minutes from his aunt's house, he said. Delafield, who was teaching high school in Georgia at the time, said he talked to his aunt and his mother less than three hours before police were called to the house.

"They both answered me, 'Everything was OK,' " he said.

Delafield, 35, who is the executor of his aunt's estate, said he became frustrated after waiting three months for a death certificate and has hired Jacksonville attorney Rick Alexander to investigate the case. Alexander said no suit has been filed and that his office is beginning an investigation.

In a similar finding released Friday, the State Attorney's Office said the death of John David Johnson III, who died Sept. 30 after he was tased by Clay County Deputy Chris Faircloth, was an accident.

Johnson, 27, was acting irrationally in the street of a South Hampton subdivision off College Avenue when Faircloth was called. Johnson started striking Faircloth in the face and was shot by a Taser. Johnson was taken to Orange Park Medical Center, where he died about an hour later.

dana.treen@jacksonville.com (904) 359-4091

This story can be found on Jacksonville.com at
http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/021307/met_7960731.shtml.

Berkeley Grandmother Slain by Berkeley Police Officer

Family and friends of Anita Gay gathered on Thursday February 21st at the South Berkeley Community Church (at 1802 Fairview Street) to celebrate her life and to share concerns about police conduct in Berkeley.

Anita Gay, a long-term Berkeley resident and beloved neighborhood grandmother, was shot dead by a Berkeley Police officer on February 16th at her home on Ward Street. She is survived by her six children, grandchildren, relatives, and neighborhood community.

Family and community members have organized the creation of the Justice for Anita! Justice for All Campaign! to press the City Council to take action to address residents' concerns about the conduct of BPD. Although many are shocked and angry about what happened and they are prepared to protest this outrage, they focused on supporting Gay's family and celebrating the woman on February 21st.

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/02/20/18480678.php

Gig Harbor woman killed by Utah police

01:56 PM PDT on Tuesday, June 24, 2008

SEATTLE – A former Gig Harbor, Wash. resident has been killed by police in Lehi, Utah after allegedly shooting an officer.

Media reports say 34-year-old Kelly Wark was shot by police after the incident during a traffic stop Monday morning.

A clerk at a gas station reportedly called 911 after believing Wark was driving under the influence.

The officer who stopped Wark is in the hospital with two gunshot wounds to the head.
Wark was killed by backup officers. Police are awaiting toxicology results on Wark.

Wark was living in Utah and attending school at the Utah College of Massage Therapy in Lindon.
Lehi is about 25 miles south of Salt Lake City.

http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_062408WAB_gig_harbor_woman_killed_in_utah_TP.3603f9c9.html

San Diego Police Rescue, Then Kill, Aggressive Man

Posted:
July 21st, 2008 10:58 AM EDT

ARI B. BLOOMEKATZ
Los Angeles Times

A man who went overboard during a party cruise in San Diego Bay was killed by police Saturday night after he attacked the officers who had tried to rescue him, police said today.

Police said the man was on the cruise with at least 800 other people when he somehow ended up in the water after 11 p.m. He was identified today as Steven Paul Hirschfield, 37, of Los Angeles.
The boat's captain sent a distress signal, and two Harbor Police boats and one Coast Guard vessel pulled Hirschfield from the water.

But Hirschfield began fighting with police as soon as he was on board, said San Diego Harbor Police Sgt. Dave Fouser.

"You're trying to help some guy out the water, and he's fighting," Fouser said. "He became very combative with the officers, and somewhere in the course of the fight, he was able to get one of the officer's Tasers away from him."

Fouser said Hirschfield knocked one officer to the deck and then used the Taser to strike him in the face.
When Hirschfield then tried to grab one of the officer's guns, Fouser said, the other officer shot him. Hirschfield was taken ashore to an ambulance and was pronounced dead from the single gunshot wound, Fouser said.

The San Diego Police Department's homicide unit was investigating the shooting along with the San Diego Harbor Police Department and the county District Attorney's Office.

It's unclear how many of the 800 passengers on the party cruise saw the incident, but police said they took the names and contact information for all those on board.

http://www.officer.com/publication/printer.jsp?id=42418

Salinas woman was killed by police

July 14, 2008

Police shots kill woman

Officers say she appeared to be stabbing herself

By DAWN WITHERS

The Salinas Californian

A Salinas woman was killed by Salinas police early Sunday morning after two officers believed she was lunging at one with of them with a knife or a ice pick.

Maria Irma De La Torre, 45, was shot twice in the torso around 3:45 a.m. by a police officer outside her home at 1143 East Laurel Drive. The officers have been placed on four days administrative leave pending an investigation.

"It's a wrongful death," said Diana Hernandez, De La Torre's niece, who added De La Torre suffered from epileptic seizures but had no history of violence or hurting herself during seizures. She was taking medication to control the seizures, Hernandez said.

De La Torre, Hernandez said, was a shy woman born in Michoacán, Mexico, but lived in Salinas "forever and a day." Hernandez said she was devoted to church and her family and because of her epilepsy was unable to work.

"It's grief everywhere," Hernandez said describing the family's mood. "My aunt, she didn't harm anyone, she was the kindest person."

According to information from the Salinas Police Department, officers responded to a 9-1-1 call "involving a woman acting strangely" at the residence.

Cmdr. Kelly McMillin said the officers thought their lives were endangered and reacted to protect their lives. De La Torre did not show any signs of having a seizure, McMillin said, and was unresponsive when police tried to talk to her.

"This is pure tragedy," McMillin said. "No one is happy the way this happened."
It is the first officer-involved shooting this year and the second since January 2007, McMillin said. The shooting last year didn't result in any injuries.

When the two officers arrived they found De La Torre sitting in a minivan in front of her home "stabbing herself in the neck with a small implement." She moved from the driver's seat to the passenger seat as the officers tried to remove her from the car, according to police.

The officers, who are not being named, had difficulty trying to restrain De La Torre while in the van, McMillin said, and claim De La Torre lunged at one of the officers with what they thought was a knife or ice pick, causing one of the officers to fire his Taser and the other officer to fire his gun shooting the woman twice.

The entire incident took place in less than 10 minutes, McMillin said, and the officers independently made the same decision to draw their weapons to stop De La Torre, one choosing his Taser, the other his gun.

McMillin said it turned out De La Torre had a metal crochet hook in her hand, not a knife or ice pick, and it isn't clear if it was the same item she used to stab herself.
De La Torre was taken to Natividad Medical Center and Hernandez said the family was notified of her death around 9 a.m. Sunday.

Police were still outside De La Torre's small green house Sunday afternoon with yellow crime scene tape blocking the driveway.

Hernandez, who did not see the shooting, said De La Torre had been sick in recent days following another death in the family and that her husband, Jose Licea, called Hernandez's mother, Hilda Hernandez, around 1 a.m. Sunday saying De La Torre was unwell and needed to go to the hospital.

Hilda headed over to De La Torre's house and called 9-1-1, Hernandez said, only to request an ambulance, not any police officers.

McMillin said the call that came to police was of a woman acting erratically and people who call emergency services can't request only an ambulance because medics won't to go an emergency that may be unsafe until police have secured it.

When police arrived, Hernandez said, they told Hilda to "move out of the way" so they could get to De La Torre, Hernandez said. Her mother, she said, didn't see the shooting but later called Hernandez saying, "They killed her! They killed her!"

Licea, Hernandez said, did see the incident and the officer who shot his wife. The family, she said, is hiring a lawyer to look into the shooting.

"She was handicapped," Hernandez said. "They could have Tased her."

McMillin declined to comment on the specifics of what was said at the scene, adding that police have several independent witness statements corroborating the officers' account and the evidence that's been gathered from De La Torre's home.

Family members are coming to Salinas from Texas and Mexico. Hernandez said memorial services will likely be held this week.

http://thecalifornian.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080714/NEWS01/807140302/1002