By Douglass Dowty
Syracuse, NY -- A Syracuse man
who claims police brutality had all charges against him dropped today by the
Onondaga County District Attorney's Office.
Alonzo Grant, 53, complains
that Syracuse police left him bloodied after arresting him on false charges of
disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and harassment in a June 28 confrontation
at his 105 Hudson St. residence.
After reviewing the case, the
DA's office concluded that Grant had done nothing wrong.
"Witnesses at the scene,
both related and unrelated to Mr. Grant, did not report any conduct by him that
could reasonably be considered resisting arrest," prosecutors said in a
news release. The law did not support the disorderly conduct charge, either.
"It appears that Mr. Grant
has an unblemished record and is well-established in the community," the
DA's office continued. "Based upon all of the foregoing factors, this
office has moved to dismiss these charges in the interest of justice."
Syracuse Police Chief Frank
Fowler declined Wednesday to discuss the decision by the DA's office to drop
the charges against Grant.
"That's not something
that's appropriate for me to comment on," he said.
Fowler confirmed that an
internal police department investigation into the matter is underway, but would
not provide specifics.
One of Grant's lawyers, Jesse
Ryder, said the DA's office vindicated his client's version of what happened.
"Our client is innocent.
He was innocent from day one. We're happy the DA's office has recognized
that," Ryder said, stressing Grant's spotless criminal record.
Grant has filed a complaint
against officers with the city's Citizen Review Board and plans to file a
federal lawsuit, said another attorney, Charles Bonner, of San Francisco.
"I want to applaud Chief
Assistant DA Alison Fineberg and DA Fitzpatrick," Bonner said. "They
felt the injustice in this case and they wanted to be on the right side of
justice. And they did the right thing. I think this is going to have a unifying
effect on the Syracuse community."
The confrontation started after
Grant called for police help one Saturday evening to report an argument between
his daughter and a neighbor in the front yard. By the time officers arrived,
the dispute was over.
Instead, police charged Grant
with acting aggressively around his wife and other officers. The DA's office
described what happened:
"It was Mr. Grant who made
the call to police in an attempt to prevent the verbal dispute from escalating
further. He was not suspected as the perpetrator of any crime. When an officer
entered the residence to assess the situation he eventually asked Mr. Grant to
exit his home and speak to SPD Officer Paul Montalto. As he was walking out the
door, Mr. Grant punched his screen door, causing the door to slam against the
side of his house. Almost immediately following Mr. Grant's action, the police
decided to arrest for him Disorderly Conduct.
SPD Officer Damon Lockett
reached for Mr. Grant and both parties went over the side of railing and fell
to the ground. At this point, Officers Lockett and Montalto struck Mr. Grant
about the face and head several times. Mr. Grant suffered injuries which
required medical attention.
Those findings came after
Fitzpatrick assigned Fineberg and two investigators to review the case. They
interviewed six witnesses and three police officers, and read all related
police reports, affidavits and partial video of the incident, the release
stated. Fineberg declined to comment beyond what was stated in the news
release.
The prosecutors' version of
events is starkly different from what the two responding officers claimed
happened.
An account from Officer
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."
The police then accused Grant
of grabbing an officer around the waist and attempting to tackle him.
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," Montalto
wrote.
Grant was due in City Court
today to face the charges. But instead, Fineberg publicly announced the DA's
office intention to drop the charges.
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.
His case is one of two recent
accusations of police brutality that led to a review of the city's use of force
policy by Common Councilors.
Bonner, his lawyer, said this
case will be a beacon for those victimized by "rogue officers."
A federal lawsuit will be filed
Thursday accusing Syracuse police of false arrest, falsified police reports and
conspiracy to deprive Grant of his federal and state Constitutional rights, the
lawyer said.
