Last Friday afternoon the Manhattan DA's office announced that they would not prosecute Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna or Deputy Inspector Johnny Cardona for pepper spraying and sucker punching Occupy Wall Street protesters. Now the City Law Department has reversed the position it took earlier this month and will defend Cardona in a civil lawsuit filed against him.
DNAinfo's Murray Weiss reports that Cardona, who violently struck protester Felix Rivera-Pitre in the face for no apparent reason, will meet with City attorneys this week to discuss his legal strategy. Cardona, who was not disciplined by the NYPD for his actions, claims he suffered hip and knee injuries during the incident that required surgery.
Weiss repeats Cardona's version of events of the morning of October 14, 2011:
Cardona...told investigators he approached the protester to take him into custody after Rivera-Pitre tried to elbow him in the face. Other video apparently showed Rivera-Pitre with a clenched fist as though he was preparing to strike the veteran NYPD supervisor.
We did not witness any of the above, nor are we able to locate the relevant chapter in the Patrol Guide, "Decking Citizens Who Have Not Yet Committed Any Discernible Crime." It's also hard to believe that NYPD spokesman Paul Browne, who never hesitates to right a perceived wrong, would decline to release this "other video" that exonerates or at the very least, explains Cardona's actions. But hey, we're not On The Inside.
Roy Richter, the president of the Captains Endowment Association, actually told Weiss that Cardona is "the true victim" of the whole incident, which (one would hope) should make Cardona feel queasy after reading those words.
The City still refuses to defend DI Bologna. “For the mayor to continue to deny representation to Deputy Inspector Bologna is an equal injustice and one that should be corrected in light of the District Attorney's review," Richter said.
We've asked the Law Department why they reversed their position and we'll update if we hear back.
[UPDATE]Corporation Council Michael Cardozo responded to our request with this statement:
"Under State law, a City employee is entitled to Law Department representation in civil cases arising out of his or her work, as long as the action did not violate any agency rule or regulation. Last week, DA Vance closed an investigation of Deputy Inspector Cardona without filing any charges, and the incident is not being investigated by anyone else. As a result, the Law Department is now able to defend him in the pending civil court action."
