NOPD officer charged with sex crimes involving juvenile bonds out of jail

Paul Murphy

NEW ORLEANS -- Suspended Officer Willie A. Gant, Sr., was bonded out of Orleans Parish Prison late Wednesday afternoon.

The 26-year veteran on the New Orleans Police Department faces two counts of indecent behavior with juveniles and two counts of sexual battery on a juvenile.

According to arrest documents, a 12-year-old girl claims Gant molested her on two separate occasions at his house in the 1500 block of Marigny Street in the St. Roch neighborhood. His attorney Patrick Giraud says Gant denies the charges.

"We haven't had a discussion as to where he believes these charges originated from," said Giraud. "He just denied them."

Police executed a search warrant at Gant's home after his arrest. His attorney wouldn't say what, if anything, was taken during the search. A judge set Gant's bond at $50,000.

"The main concern was making sure he got a livable bond, which we believe we were successful with," said Giraud. Willie Gant has a troubled past with the NOPD A check of his civil service record showed multiple suspensions for Neglect of Duty and traffic accidents. He was also accused of punching a French Quarter tour guide in 2008.

Gant is the fourth NOPD officer arrested in July.

Sunday, police booked Stephanie Caldwell with two felony charges of domestic violence. On July 14, police booked officer Christopher Carter with domestic abuse battery. On July11, Detective Robert Hurst was booked with attempted murder and simple battery, following an argument with his former girlfriend. The attempted murder charge was later dropped.

New Orleans Independent Police Monitor Susan Hutson said the recent spate of arrests is troubling.

"We have a number of issues coming out, domestic violence incidents, a lot of those lately, alcohol related issues and now this incident involving minors," said Hutson. "Those are very disturbing allegations."

Hutson said it's now up to the NOPD to put a program in place to address the issues.

"The consent decree does require the NOPD to have a health and wellness program for it's officers," said Hutson. "So you have to look at what can be done to make sure you're helping officers before they kind of flame out in these situations."

The arrested officers were all suspended from duty.

Delco cop pleads not guilty to charges he stalked Montco woman

By Carl Hessler Jr.

NORRISTOWN — A part-time Colwyn, Delaware County, police officer has pleaded not guilty in Montgomery County Court to charges he allegedly harassed and stalked his former fiancée.

Stephen Rozniakowski, 32, of Norwood, waived his formal arraignment on Wednesday and entered a not guilty plea to the 25 counts of stalking and 50 counts of harassment lodged against him in connection with alleged incidents that occurred in Plymouth between October 2013 and April 2014. By waiving his arraignment, Rozniakowski did not have to appear in court and his case will now be listed for trial.

However, Rozniakowski has a hearing next week on his request to have the charges dismissed against him. He wants a county judge to review a district court judge’s decision that ordered him to stand trial on the charges.

Rozniakowski, through his lawyer Martin P. Mullaney, claimed prosecutors did not provide sufficient evidence during a June 11 preliminary hearing before District Court Judge Francis J. Bernhardt III of Conshohocken to support the charges. Prosecutors will have the opportunity to address Rozniakowski’s request during next week’s hearing.

Rozniakowski remains free on $100,000 unsecured bail pending his next court hearing. As a condition of bail, Rozniakowski is prohibited from contacting the woman he is accused of stalking.

Rozniakowski reportedly is still employed as a police officer with Colwyn, but Mullaney previously revealed that he is on desk duty and does not patrol the streets.

With the charges, prosecutors alleged Rozniakowski contacted his former fiancée thousands of times through unwanted phone calls, text messages and emails during the seven-month period. Prosecutors alleged Rozniakowski’s alleged conduct caused the victim to fear for her safety, so much so she sought help from police. Even after police warned Rozniakowski to stay away from the victim and have no further contact with her, he allegedly continued texting, emailing and phoning the young woman, at times 20 times an hour, prosecutors alleged.

The victim contacted Plymouth Township authorities on Feb. 28 and told them she and Rozniakowski had been engaged to be married, but that she broke off the relationship last September, according to the affidavit of probable cause. After the breakup, Rozniakowski began contacting the woman repeatedly by calling, texting and leaving messages on her cellphone, according to the arrest affidavit filed by Plymouth Police Officer Joseph LaPenta III.

The victim, who is employed as a certified paramedic for the Plymouth Community Ambulance Association, estimated that on some days Rozniakowski called her cellphone 50 to 100 times and text messaged her 100 times a day, according to the arrest affidavit. The woman told police she blocked Rozniakowski’s number, but he continued to call from blocked phone numbers, according to court documents.

“When (the woman) would ignore the phone calls, Rozniakowski would then leave voice mail messages in an attempt to explain his need to speak with her,” LaPenta wrote in the arrest affidavit.

Prosecutors alleged Rozniakowski ignored the woman’s repeated requests to stop contacting her.

In March, LaPenta spoke with Rozniakowski a

nd informed him that his former fiancée had filed a complaint against him. At that time, Rozniakowski allegedly admitted to calling his former fiancée from blocked numbers, saying he calls “simply because he cares about her,” according to the arrest affidavit. LaPenta warned Rozniakowski to cease all forms of contact with the woman or face criminal charges and Rozniakowski indicated he understood and promised to stop all contact with the woman, according to the arrest affidavit.

However, the calls, texts and emails continued, authorities alleged.

“The amount of phone calls, voice mails and emails that have continued to occur even after I advised Rozniakowski to cease all contact with (the woman) show an escalating course of conduct,” LaPenta alleged in the affidavit.

The woman also told authorities that she had observed Rozniakowski following her from her home to numerous locations and that he had gained access to her work schedule, according to the criminal complaint.

Cop Accused Of Using Potentially "Deadly Physical Force" While Beating Suspect With Baton

A Brooklyn cop has been accused of violating NYPD guidelines after hitting a suspect in the head with a baton during a 2012 arrest.

The Daily News reports that a prosecutor with the city's Civilian Complaint Review Board has accused NYPD Officer Keith Dsouza of using potentially "deadly physical force" against Ryan Scails on July 4th, 2012. Scails, then a 24-year-old arts student, was arrested by Officer Dsouza and his partner, Officer Fernando Lopes, after he was allegedly seen urinating on a building in Red Hook.

Officer Dsouza claims he "never touched" Scails's head with his baton during the arrest, and a surveillance video of the arrest neither confirms nor denies Dsouza's assertion. But Scails filed a CCRB complaint soon afterward, and at yesterday's disciplinary trial, prosecutor Heather Cook sided with Scails. "“There was never a deadly physical force threat to these officers — never,” she said yesterday. “[Dsouza] hit him in the head, and he knew he wasn’t supposed to him in the head. He got in more than one whack on his head.”

Scails says that on the night of the arrest, he had been drinking with friends in Prospect Heights and went to a bar in Red Hook. On his way home to Park Slope, he stopped to relieve himself and was arrested. "I felt violated,” he said. “I still do." A spokesperson with the CCRB tells us Dsouza faces the loss of a week's pay; the Police Commissioner will determine his final punishment.

The NYPD's use of force has been under scrutiny since Staten Island man Eric Garner died after being put in a chokehold by a cop earlier this month. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton has promised to put cops through extensive retraining, though he says the NYPD will continue to make arrests for lesser crimes as part of Bratton's "broken windows" policing policy.

Madison County Sheriff’s Office settles lawsuit with man badly beaten after arrest

BY CLAIRE AIELLO,

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) – A man has reached a settlement with the Madison County Sheriff’s Office after being badly beaten during an arrest in 2012.

Robert Bryant filed a civil lawsuit against Madison County Sheriff Blake Dorning and eight of his deputies, claiming false arrest and conspiracy to cover up a “revenge beatdown.”

Sheriff Dorning announced Thursday the two sides have reached a settlement through mediation.

An insurance company represented the Sheriff and deputies, and settled with Bryant and his attorneys. Sheriff Dorning said his office admits no liability or responsibility with regard the allegations made by Bryant.

Bryant was arrested during a traffic stop in August 2012, but was involved in a bar fight with one of the deputies weeks earlier. That deputy, Justin Watson, was in plain clothes at the time of the fight.

Bryant accused seven deputies of beating Bryant or watching him be punched and kicked while unconscious and handcuffed at the side of the road. The eighth deputy was accused of helping falsify investigative reports.

WHNT News 19 spoke with one of Bryant’s attorneys, Jeremiah Hodges, to see how Bryant is doing.   Hodges said Bryant is doing okay physically, but is scarred emotionally from the ordeal.

“We are disappointed that the Sheriff’s office continues to fail to accept responsibility for the horrific revenge attack on Robert Bryant. We believe that the evidence and the settlement paint a clearer picture than a press release.”

“While we are thrilled for our client, we know that money cannot buy safety for him when he can no longer trust those sworn to protect and serve,” Hodges added.

Our news partners The Huntsville Times/Al.com covered this case extensively.  Bryant’s lawsuit argued the deputies concocted a false account to hide the attack on Bryant and that Sheriff Dorning later learned of the events and did nothing to discipline the officers nor drop the charges.

Dorning said the county’s insurance company settled the case out of court to minimize attorney’s fees, expecting the case would have taken several years.

The Sheriff and deputies’ legal counsel fees were paid by Madison County’s insurance company under the County’s insurance policy.

Prior to the settlement, Bryant had requested a trial by jury.

Diabetic Brooklyn teen denied insulin after being falsely arrested on attempted murder charges: suit

Richard Gonzalez’s condition is so serious that the 14-year-old wears an electronic pump programmed to administer doses of insulin every hour, the suit asserts. His family claims that during questioning, cops removed the pump and "with balled fists" they ‘tried to manipulate him into confessing’ to shooting his friend at a Bushwick Foot Locker.

BY BARBARA ROSS , KERRY BURKE , CORKY SIEMASZKO

The NYPD has been hit with a federal lawsuit by a Brooklyn family that claims cops bullied a diabetic teen who was denied insulin while falsely locked up on attempted murder charges.

Richard Gonzalez’s family said the only evidence cops had to tie the 14-year-old special-ed student to an April shooting at Foot Locker in Bushwick were eyewitnesses who told them the gunman was named “Richie.”

When police got the frightened boy alone in a men’s room at the 83rd Precinct, “with balled fists” they “tried to manipulate him into confessing,” the family’s lawyer Carmen Giordano wrote in court papers filed in Brooklyn federal court.

“You going down,” one of them said, according to the lawsuit.

“I was scared,” Gonzalez told The Daily News on Friday.

His condition is so serious that he wears an electronic pump programmed to administer doses of insulin every hour, the lawsuit says.

But Giordano said police removed the pump and threatened to throw the boy’s mom, Divian Ramos, out of the stationhouse when she objected to them questioning her son without Ramos present.

While Ramos was later allowed to bring the boy food and test his blood sugar levels, Giordano said once the teenager was charged with attempted murder she was not allowed anywhere near him.

By the time Gonzalez appeared before a judge, his sugar levels were so high he was gagging, dizzy, weak and nauseous, the suit asserts.

The accused teenager, who repeatedly denied shooting anyone, was transferred to two hospitals over the next few days and at one point spent three nights sleeping handcuffed to a bed, according to the lawsuit.

When Gonzalez could not come up with $75,000 bail, he was shipped off to a juvenile facility from which he was transported to two more hospitals — without his parent's knowledge — after his blood sugar soared.

Ultimately, the court papers say, the Brooklyn District Attorney dropped the charge against Gonzalez after learning that he was arrested solely on the grounds that his name was Richie — and that he was a Facebook friend of the victim, 15-year-old Isaiah Martinez.

It later turned out that the real “Richie” had been treated on the night of the shooting after he was stabbed.

Now Gonzalez has been branded a snitch in the neighborhood and, fearing for his safety, his mom wants the city to move them to another subsidizing housing site, according to court papers.

The family is also seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for false arrest, malicious prosecution, endangering the teenager's health and negligence.

There was no immediate response to the lawsuit from the NYPD.

Gonzalez was arrested after Martinez was shot in the foot for allegedly trying to cut in line at a Knickerbocker Ave. store to buy a pair of $250 Kanye West-designed Nike Air Foamposite Pro “Yeezy” sneakers.

“I was sleeping” at the time of the shooting, Gonzalez told The News.

Giordano said the teenager should not have been arrested in the first place.

“They focused on Richie exclusively and disregarded very strong evidence that’s it wasn’t him,” the lawyer said.

Even the victim told cops they nabbed the wrong Richie.

“They put a lot of pressure on the kid who was shot to change his story,” Giordano said. “They were trying to make the sneaker fit when it was not made to fit.”

Gonzalez said he would never hurt Martinez.

“We used to play together and go to parties,” he said of victim. “He was a good friend.”

Lawsuit claims false arrest and excessive force by Mission cop

by Lorenzo Zazueta

MISSION — A Mission woman has filed a federal lawsuit claiming one of the city’s police officer hurt her by roughing her up during a 2012 drunken driving arrest — when she wasn’t drunk.

Lucia Ledezma, 52, is suing the city, arresting police officer Omar Diaz de Villegas, ex Mission police Chief and current City Manager Martin Garza and current Chief Robert Dominguez for false arrest and excessive force. She is seeking monetary damages to cover physical and mental anguish.

According to the lawsuit, Diaz de Villegas pulled over Ledezma July 18, 2012 and asked her to perform a field sobriety test. Ledezma told him she could not do so due to a recent lower-back surgery and because she was nervous from him yelling at her.

Ledezma told Diaz de Villegas she had not had any alcohol that night but he still arrested her for drunken driving, the complaint says.

It says Ledezma did not resist the arrest, but Diaz de Villegas violently grabbed her arms and placed them behind her back in order to handcuff her. Ledezma said she then heard a ‘pop’ in her right arm.

The complaint further alleges Diaz de Villegas threw Ledezma head first into the back of the patrol car, causing her to hit her head on a hard shell on the back of the front seat.

Diaz de Villegas took Ledezma to the Palmview Police Department where she was given a breathalyzer test. The results showed Ledezma was not intoxicated, according to the complaint.

Garza referred comments on the case to law firm Guerra, Leeds, Sabo and Hernandez, which is representing the city. Attorney Bobby Guerra said the firm is in the initial stages of looking into the lawsuit and would be filing a response soon.

“I will be vehemently defending the city in this matter,” Guerra said.

6 Philadelphia officers charged in corruption case

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Six city narcotics officers used gangland tactics to shake down drug dealers, relying on guns, badges, beatings and threats to extort huge piles of cash and cocaine, federal authorities charged in an indictment Wednesday.

The police officers once held a suspect over an 18th floor balcony and used a steel bar to beat someone else in the head, authorities said. They held one man captive in a hotel room for several days while he and his family were threatened, they said.

And another dealer was thrown in a jail cell overnight, uncharged, while officers broke into his home and stole a safe with $80,000 in it.

"It is almost a perennial in this city, that you go from one corrupt narcotics unit to another," said lawyer Larry Krasner, who represents some of the approximately 60 people suing the city and individual officers over tainted drug arrests. "When you're dealing with narcotics, there is always more temptation because the ability to steal, and to extort and to abuse is much greater."

The scheme ran from 2006 to 2012, when Officer Jeffrey Walker was arrested. He has since pleaded guilty and cooperated in the ensuing two-year probe. Walker and a colleague "stole and distributed a multi-kilo quantity of cocaine, like everyday drug dealers do," U.S. Attorney Zane Memeger said.

The six accused officers — Thomas Liciardello, Brian Reynolds, Michael Spicer, Perry Betts, Linwood Norman and John Speiser — all pleaded not guilty during brief federal court hearings Thursday afternoon. They will be held without bail until detention hearings Monday.

Defense lawyers said the allegations come from dubious informants: drug dealers and Walker.

"I'm surprised the government will give them so much deference and credence," said lawyer Gregory Pagano, who represents Betts.

Brian McMonagle, a lawyer representing Liciardello, predicted they would all be exonerated and returned to duty.

They will be suspended by the department while police administrators take steps to fire them. They had been put on desk duty as the investigation unfolded, and dozens of cases have since been dismissed.

"I took them out of narcotics, but I left them ... on the job," said Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, who attended a news conference with the U.S. attorney. "I didn't want to do anything to jeopardize that investigation."

The charges in the 26-count indictment include racketeering conspiracy, extortion, robbery, kidnapping and drug dealing. The alleged shakedowns involved the seizure of as much as $210,000 at a time, along with three kilos of cocaine, Rolex watches and a Calvin Klein suit. The officers sometimes reported some of the cash on police reports, and other times reported nothing at all, the indictment said.

Most of the defendants face at least a seven-year mandatory sentence if convicted.

But the U.S. attorney acknowledged police corruption cases can be difficult to win. He said investigators have to build a rock-solid case before making arrests because "you know that a battle is coming when you get to trial."

The Philadelphia district attorney's office said it notified police two years ago that it would no longer rely on testimony from five of the officers, and as a result no open cases involving them remained. Cases involving the sixth officer, Norman, were now being reviewed, the office said in a statement.

Walker pleaded guilty in February to stealing $15,000 from a drug dealer in a plot that also involved planting drugs in his car. His lawyer had said he was cooperating in a wider probe of the drug trafficking unit.

Ramsey has made fighting police corruption a hallmark of his six-year tenure in Philadelphia. He complained that the police contract bars him from transferring officers between units or making other personnel changes without cause.

"The commissioner is right," Krasner said. "We have arbitrators who routinely put officers back in the department who never should have been there in the first place."

Reserve police officer accused of raping ex-girlfriend

ST. CHARLES, Mo. — A 23-year-old man who works as a reserve police officer in the St. Louis suburb of Pine Lawn is facing charges for allegedly breaking into his ex-girlfriend's apartment and raping her.

Rico Frazier was arrested Wednesday and charged with burglary, rape, felonious restraint and two counts of sodomy. He is jailed on $200,000 cash-only bond, and does not have a listed attorney.

A 22-year-old Lindenwood University student reported the attack in May, at her apartment about two miles from the St. Charles campus. Frazier and the woman were involved in a relationship until October.

Police say the suspect used a rock to smash through a sliding glass door while the woman was sleeping, then sprayed her in the face with law enforcement-grade pepper spray, and sexually assaulted her.

NYPD's Brutal Arrest of Half-Naked Woman Captured on Video

 Kelly Conaboy

According to video obtained by the New York Daily News, a nearly naked Brooklyn woman was dragged from her apartment and handcuffed by 12 NYPD officers. The officers were reportedly responding to a domestic disturbance call from a different apartment in her building.

The New York Daily News reports that police demanded entry to 48-year-old Denise Stewart's apartment at 11:45 p.m. on July 13. Stewart cracked open the door wearing only a towel and told the officers that they had the wrong apartment, at which point they pulled her into the hallway and attempted to handcuff her. She lost her towel in the struggle, leaving her wearing only underwear.

Video footage of the chaos shows multiple officers holding the half naked Stewart against the wall, attempting to cuff her, while a crowd gathers around them. Stewart, who is reportedly asthmatic, can be heard saying "oxygen, get my oxygen," before she faints and falls to the floor. Members of the crowd can be heard shouting "Her asthma! Her asthma!"

The NYPD got a 911 call to the apartment building's address, but didn't have an apartment number—so when they heard shouting coming from Stewart's apartment, they knocked and attempted to enter. Once inside, they noticed that Stewart's 12-year-old daughter had "visible injuries" on her face and, when asked, the 12-year-old allegedly said her mother and older sister beat her with a belt.

The 12-year-old refused to be removed from the apartment, kicking the door of the police car and kicking out one of its windows, the broken glass from which injured one of the cops, according to the NYPD.

Stewart, who allegedly bit an officer's finger during the struggle, was left nearly naked in the hallway for approximately two minutes and 20 seconds. After cops entered her apartment and arrested Stewart's two sons and two daughters, a female cop draped a towel over her exposed body.

The family reports that Stewart's 4-year-old grandson was pepper sprayed during the struggle.

Stewart's lawyer told to the New York Daily News that police entered Stewart's apartment by mistake:

Stewart's lawyer, Amy Rameau, said she was told by a Legal Aid attorney also assigned to the case that the 911 call came from a different apartment on an upper floor — and cops went to Stewart's door by mistake.

Rameau told the Daily News that the Administration for Children's Services was called to investigate, but found no evidence of neglect.

Denise Stewart was charged with assaulting a police officer, and she and her 20-year-old daughter Diamond Stewart were charged with resisting arrest, criminal possession of a weapon, and acting in a manner injurious to a child.

Stewart's 24-year-old son Kirkland Stewart was also charged with resisting arrest, and her 12-year-old daughter was charged with assaulting a police officer, criminal mischief, and criminal possession of a weapon.

The Daily News reports that a police spokesperson said the incident is under investigation by Internal Affairs.

Delco cop pleads not guilty to charges he stalked Montco woman

By Carl Hessler Jr

NORRISTOWN — A part-time Colwyn, Delaware County, police officer has pleaded not guilty in Montgomery County Court to charges he allegedly harassed and stalked his former fiancée.

Stephen Rozniakowski, 32, of Norwood, waived his formal arraignment on Wednesday and entered a not guilty plea to the 25 counts of stalking and 50 counts of harassment lodged against him in connection with alleged incidents that occurred in Plymouth between October 2013 and April 2014. By waiving his arraignment, Rozniakowski did not have to appear in court and his case will now be listed for trial.

However, Rozniakowski has a hearing next week on his request to have the charges dismissed against him. He wants a county judge to review a district court judge’s decision that ordered him to stand trial on the charges.

Rozniakowski, through his lawyer Martin P. Mullaney, claimed prosecutors did not provide sufficient evidence during a June 11 preliminary hearing before District Court Judge Francis J. Bernhardt III of Conshohocken to support the charges. Prosecutors will have the opportunity to address Rozniakowski’s request during next week’s hearing.

Rozniakowski remains free on $100,000 unsecured bail pending his next court hearing. As a condition of bail, Rozniakowski is prohibited from contacting the woman he is accused of stalking.

Rozniakowski reportedly is still employed as a police officer with Colwyn, but Mullaney previously revealed that he is on desk duty and does not patrol the streets.

With the charges, prosecutors alleged Rozniakowski contacted his former fiancée thousands of times through unwanted phone calls, text messages and emails during the seven-month period. Prosecutors alleged Rozniakowski’s alleged conduct caused the victim to fear for her safety, so much so she sought help from police. Even after police warned Rozniakowski to stay away from the victim and have no further contact with her, he allegedly continued texting, emailing and phoning the young woman, at times 20 times an hour, prosecutors alleged.

The victim contacted Plymouth Township authorities on Feb. 28 and told them she and Rozniakowski had been engaged to be married, but that she broke off the relationship last September, according to the affidavit of probable cause. After the breakup, Rozniakowski began contacting the woman repeatedly by calling, texting and leaving messages on her cellphone, according to the arrest affidavit filed by Plymouth Police Officer Joseph LaPenta III.

The victim, who is employed as a certified paramedic for the Plymouth Community Ambulance Association, estimated that on some days Rozniakowski called her cellphone 50 to 100 times and text messaged her 100 times a day, according to the arrest affidavit. The woman told police she blocked Rozniakowski’s number, but he continued to call from blocked phone numbers, according to court documents.

“When (the woman) would ignore the phone calls, Rozniakowski would then leave voice mail messages in an attempt to explain his need to speak with her,” LaPenta wrote in the arrest affidavit.

Prosecutors alleged Rozniakowski ignored the woman’s repeated requests to stop contacting her.

In March, LaPenta spoke with Rozniakowski and informed him that his former fiancée had filed a complaint against him. At that time, Rozniakowski allegedly admitted to calling his former fiancée from blocked numbers, saying he calls “simply because he cares about her,” according to the arrest affidavit. LaPenta warned Rozniakowski to cease all forms of contact with the woman or face criminal charges and Rozniakowski indicated he understood and promised to stop all contact with the woman, according to the arrest affidavit.

However, the calls, texts and emails continued, authorities alleged.

“The amount of phone calls, voice mails and emails that have continued to occur even after I advised Rozniakowski to cease all contact with (the woman) show an escalating course of conduct,” LaPenta alleged in the affidavit.

The woman also told authorities that she had observed Rozniakowski following her from her home to numerous locations and that he had gained access to her work schedule, according to the criminal complaint.

Herminio Pizarro was awarded $2 million for pain

Herminio Pizarro was awarded $2 million for pain and $1 million in punitive damages. Pizarro said he still has not recovered from the Aug. 4, 2007 beatdown at the 40th Precinct stationhouse after a confrontation at a street fair. Pizarro said he still wants the NYPD to investigate the cops involved.

BY ROCCO PARASCANDOLA

It took seven years, but Herminio Pizarro finally has some measure of justice after being beaten senseless by a gang of cops in a stationhouse bathroom.

That measure would be $3 million.

A Bronx jury Thursday granted the multimillion-dollar award to the former state correction officer who says he still hasn’t fully recovered from the Aug. 4, 2007, beatdown at the 40th Precinct stationhouse after a confrontation at a street fair.

“They dragged me to the bathroom, two cops, and I said that I didn’t need to use the bathroom,” Pizarro told the Daily News. “There were five cops waiting for me in there. They threw me to the ground. They were kicking me, hitting me, punching me.”

Pizarro had two neck surgeries and lost his construction job.

“I can’t even dance with my lady,” he said.

The jury awarded $2 million for pain and suffering and $1 million in punitive damages, which Pizarro said ends years of stress. But he still wants the NYPD to investigate the officers involved.

“They lied,’’ he said. “They came here under oath and they were lying.”

The NYPD had no comment and wouldn’t say if it conducted an investigation when Pizarro filed his lawsuit in 2008. In court papers, however, police painted Pizarro as the aggressor in the Bronx incident.

They said he whacked Officer William Kelly over the head with a baton stolen from Officer Efrain Morales.

Pizarro was arrested on assault and robbery charges. But all charges were dropped.

“You never see that happen with an assault on a police officer,” said his lawyer, Raymond Gazer. “What does that tell you?”

Miami-Dade cop arrested, accused of working with marijuana grow-house operation

 BY DAVID OVALLE

A Miami-Dade County narcotics detective passed along sensitive police intelligence to a violent gang of marijuana smugglers, allowing them to avoid arrest and even to target their rivals, federal authorities said Thursday.

The detective, Roderick Silva, was arrested after a federal grand jury indicted him on charges that he worked for the lucrative grow-house operation.

Silva’s arrest was not a surprise — he had been on administrative duty since the summer of 2009, when the investigation began.

But allegations of the extent of his work for drug dealers turned into another embarrassing blow to the county’s largest police department.

In April, a Miami-Dade Police Department internal affairs lieutenant, Ralph Mata, was arrested by the feds, accused of acting as a henchman for cocaine smugglers in an unrelated case. He is awaiting trial in New Jersey.

Silva, 45, is charged with aiding a conspiracy to distribute marijuana and with extortion. He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted on both counts.

The detective is the brother of one of the key members of the notorious Santiesteban family marijuana growing-and-smuggling operation.

The Santiestebans — headed by patriarch Gilberto Sr. and joined by sons Derrick, Gilberto Jr., Alexander and Darvis — were charged two years ago along with 13 others.

According to the federal indictment released Thursday, Silva tipped off the group about upcoming police raids, allowing them to dismantle and move their indoor hydroponic grow-house operations.

Silva — who is alleged to have been paid by the gang — also passed along the locations of rival marijuana grow houses, information the Santiestebans used to stage home-invasion robberies, the feds say.

He also gave the clan tips on how to avoid police, and even passed along misinformation to his fellow detectives about the Santiestebans’ large-scale operation.

“Mr. Silva’s criminal conduct not only undermined the trust of this community, but also undermined the trust of the officers who served by his side,” said South Florida U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer.

It was unclear Thursday whether Silva had a defense attorney.

Investigators say the Santiesteban clan operated 20 indoor hydroponic marijuana grow houses, yielding at least 1,146 potent pot plants that produced millions of dollars in profits.

Miami-Dade police and federal agents dismantled the outfit after they began investigating the gang’s murder of a rival.

The group was accused of fatally shooting a rival doper, Fidel Ruz Moreno, in June 2009 after the man had ripped off 50 pounds of marijuana from one of the Santiestebans’ grow houses.

All of the gang members have since been convicted and are serving prison sentences. David Silva, the brother of the arrested officer, is serving a 10-year prison term.

Gilberto Santiesteban Sr. is doing 10 years; Gilberto Jr. is doing 30.

The younger Gilberto made headlines in May when the Miami Herald published a photo of his extensive back tattoo dedicated to the case. The tattoo featured names of the lawyers, judge, detective and agents in the case.

The investigation is not over.

Miami-Dade homicide detectives are also trying to determine whether the unsolved April 2006 slaying of a teenager in West Kendall is linked to an alleged Santiesteban grow house in the area.

After going to visit a girlfriend near Southwest 172nd Terrace and 153rd Place, Angelo Lopera, 17, was attacked and shot multiple times.

Investigators believe Lopera might have been killed because he was mistakenly suspected of visiting the neighborhood to steal harvested marijuana plants from the Santiestebans’ house at 17231 SW 153rd Pl.

Orange Beach police officer charged with sex abuse of child under 12

ROBERTSDALE, Alabama — Authorities say a police officer from Alabama's Gulf Coast has been arrested on charges of sexually abusing a child under age 12.

WALA-TV reports (http://bit.ly/1kdlPJy ) Orange Beach police officer Timothy Gavin resigned Friday morning before he was arrested. Baldwin County officials said Gavin joined the police department in 2005 and had been a member of the Baldwin County Drug Task Force since March.

Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack says Gavin is accused of abusing a child three to four years ago. The sheriff says a family member brought the case to authorities' attention three days before Gavin's arrest.

It was not immediately known if Gavin had an attorney. He was scheduled to appear at a bond hearing Monday.

Mesa police officer charged with sex crimes

by Christina O'Haver

MESA, Ariz. -- A Mesa police officer is accused of having sexual contact with two females without their consent and molesting a child under the age of 15, according to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office.

A Maricopa Grand Jury indictment charged 34-year-old Justin Cherry with two counts of sexual assault and one count of child molestation.

The felony charges stem from an investigation Cherry conducted while on duty. According to Mesa police, females who were detained as suspects reported in August 2013 that the officer touched them during searches.

Mesa police said the officer was immediately placed on administrative leave and the accusations were investigated.

The case was presented to the county attorney's office, and the indictment was handed down late Thursday.

Accompanied by his attorney, Cherry self-surrendered Friday afternoon after a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was being held without bond.

Cherry is a 13-year veteran of the Mesa Police Department.

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said in a statement, "The alleged conduct of this defendant is not representative of the high degree of professionalism and integrity with which the Mesa Police Department carries out its duties.

"As my office has demonstrated in the past, we will not hesitate to prosecute sworn peace officers when sufficient evidence exists to support charges of criminal conduct. Those we entrust with enforcing the law will be equally held to account when they violate it."

Mesa police stated the following in a press release Friday night:

"This is a unfortunate event for the community as well as the police department. We believe that this is an isolated event and immediately placed Cherry on administrative leave upon the initial complaint. The matter has been investigated and scrutinized by the county attorney's office to ensure the appropriate charges were presented and filed.

"There is nothing more important than the trust of the citizens and community we serve. Remaining transparent, we want the community to understand that we do hold ourselves to the highest standard and will not tolerate acts of this nature.

"Moving forward, the men and women of the Mesa Police Department will continue to provide world-class police service. Mesa is a great place to live, work and play. With the support of the community, we will do our best to maintain their trust and protect our citizens."

NYPD chokehold death ruled homicide

Michael Winter

A New York City police officer's illegal chokehold killed Eric Garner last month, and his death has been ruled a homicide, the medical examiner announced Friday.

Officer Daniel Pantaleo and another officer tried to arrest the 6-foot-3, 350-pound father of six for selling untaxed cigarettes on a Staten Island street July 17. Video shot by a passerby showed Pantaleo, an eight-year NYPD veteran, grabbing the 43-year-old Garner around the neck as he and his partner wrestled him to the ground.

The video captured Garner saying at least eight times, "I can't breathe" as the officers pushed his face into the ground.

Four emergency workers were suspended without pay after witnesses reported they did not administer CPR or oxygen as Garner lay motionless.

Medical examiner spokeswoman Julie Bolcer said Garner died from "the compression of his chest and prone positioning during physical restraint by police." Asthma and heart disease contributed to his death, she said.

The Staten Island district attorney is investigating, and Attorney General Eric Holder said the Justice Department is "closely monitoring" the probe.

Pantaleo was stripped of his badge and gun and given desk duty. His partner, who has not been identified, was reassigned but allowed to keep his gun and badge.

"We all have a responsibility to work together to heal the wounds from decades of mistrust and create a culture where the police department and the communities they protect respect each other-and that's a responsibility that Commissioner Bratton and I take very seriously," Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement.

Do we really need the police as they are now? We need to rethink cops on the public payroll

4 NOPD Officers Arrested In July: What’s Being Done?

by Vanessa Bolano

NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) - New Orleans police are seeing a spike in arrests of fellow officers; four just this month. WGNO News Anchor Vanessa Bolano looks at what’s being done.

Four veteran New Orleans police officers are finding themselves suspended and on the wrong side of the law. This past week two were locked up.

On Tuesday, 26-year-veteran Officer Willie Gant Sr. was arrested on two counts of indecent behavior with juveniles and sexual battery on a juvenile. Days earlier, Officer Stephanie Caldwell was booked with felony charges of domestic violence. Reports show she was trying to run over her husband and instead lost control of her car.

The two incidents don’t stand alone. On July 14th, Officer Christopher Carter was charged with domestic abuse battery, and battery involving strangulation, and three days earlier Detective Robert Hurst was booked with simple battery. His attempted murder charge has since been dropped.

Attorney Raymond Burkart with the Fraternal Order of Police says the allegations have affected everyone on the force.

“Whether or not there’s some pattern here, or is it all coincidental, I think it’s too early to tell. I don’t think we have an epidemic in our department. We never did, but the fact is the law mandates strict enforcement and the new batch of laws that’s going to take effect at midnight tonight has even more enforcement and more severe penalties,” says Burkart.

Burkart says they’ve spoken to officers about the new batch of domestic violence laws that include new gun laws, divorce laws, alimony laws, and protection from stalking.

“That’s a sad day, but it’s also a day of recognition that we are not going to tolerate misconduct that’s illegal and we’re going to go and make those arrests,” says NOPD Supt. Ronal Serpas.

Chief Ronal Serpas says his officers are trained to know right from wrong, and the department has a zero tolerance policy. He says since he’s been Superintendent they’ve arrested 79 officers, but both Burkart and Serpas believe stress on the job is not an excuse.

“They do need more help. they do need more backing. that doesn’t mean they are all turning into domestic violence abusers. it’s not going to happen. it doesn’t happen,” says Burkart.

The four officers arrested in July have been placed on emergency suspension without pay pending their investigations.