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Police brutality case: Syracuse man accused of
flailing arms at wife, but she says cops didn't talk to her
Syracuse, NY -- A Syracuse man who claims
police beat him bloody is accused of disorderly conduct for flailing his arms
at his wife and officers before the arrest.
Alonzo Grant, 53, is facing misdemeanor
resisting arrest and two violations in the June 28 police confrontation that
left him bloodied. He suffered a concussion, broken nose and cut lip in the
incident at his residence, said Charles Bonner, a San Francisco-area civil
rights attorney also working on his behalf.
Grant's lawyer says he will file a federal
lawsuit challenging the police account of what happened. He called on the
Onondaga County District Attorney's Office to drop the charges.
Officers never talked to Grant's wife about
what happened, said another family lawyer, Jesse Ryder, of Syracuse. Stephanie
Grant stood by her husband during a news conference Wednesday announcing a
police brutality lawsuit against the officers.
Related link: The Grants reenact what they say
happened in YouTube video.
There had been an argument between Grant and
his adult daughter earlier that evening, and Grant asked his daughter to leave
until things calmed down, according to the videotaped statement.
The daughter was in the front yard when she got
into another argument with a neighbor. Grant called 911 to break up the dispute
between his daughter and the neighbor.
By the time police arrived, his daughter was
gone and Grant told the officers they were no longer needed. Then he walked
back up the stairs into his house.
Alonzo
Grant's lawyers provided this photo of injuries Grant suffered in a June 28
encounter with police.Provided photo
That's when the confrontation began. A witness
captured a portion of the arrest in a video posted on YouTube (contains adult
language)
Grant says a police officer followed him into
the house and told him to go outside and talk to another officer.
Grant opened the screen door, which police said
banged, and started walking down the steps.
An account from Officer Paul Montalto described
it this way: "The defendant violently punched the front door of the house
causing it to fly open,in the presence of police officers, and continued to
annoy and alarm all parties involved with his violent, tumultuous, threatening
behavior."
Grant claims he was walking down the stairs
when an officer charged him without warning, grabbed him in a bear hug and
flung him over a railing before putting him in a chokehold as another officer
struck him repeatedly with his fist.
Police said Grant resisted arrest while being
taken into custody for "acting aggressively" toward his wife, the
charge the family says is false.
"The defendant was screaming, yelling and
acting very aggressively toward his wife and police," Officer Montalto
wrote.
Police accused Grant of grabbing an officer and
wrestling with him while being placed in handcuffs.
Grant wrapped both arms around the officer's
waist and tried to take Officer Damon Lockett to the ground, according to court
paperwork.
Grant says officers grabbed him without
warning.
Lawyers
provided this photo of Alonzo Grant after an altercation with Syracuse
police.Provided photo
Officer Montalto also said Grant resisted
arrest. Grant "refused to comply with several commands to place his hands
behind his back so that he could be placed into handcuffs. In order to effect
this authorized arrest the defendant's hand (sic) were physically led behind
his back."
In this paragraph, Montalto's paperwork
mistakenly refers to Grant as "Defendant Walker." Grant's lawyers say
another defendant was arraigned the same morning with that last name.
Grant is a 30-year employee of St. Joseph's
Hospital Health Center who works seven days a week and has been married for the
past 28 years. He has no criminal record, his lawyers said.
Syracuse police have declined comment, as is
custom for pending court action. The officers' accusations were filed as part
of the public court record.
Grant has filed a complaint with the city's
Citizen Review Board and will file a federal civil rights lawsuit claiming
police brutality.
The local chapter of the NAACP and the New York
Civil Liberties Union spoke in support of Grant at a news conference Wednesday
afternoon.
Grant is black. Officer Montalto is white and
Officer Lockett is black.