Judge Says He Was Struck by a Police Officer in Queens

[limpyhobbler]

Thomas D. Raffaele, a 69-year-old justice of the New York State Supreme Court, encountered a chaotic scene while walking down a Queens street with a friend: Two uniformed police officers stood over a shirtless man lying facedown on the pavement. The man’s hands were cuffed behind his back and he was screaming. A crowd jeered at the officers.

The judge, concerned the crowd was becoming unruly, called 911 and reported that the officers needed help.

But within minutes, he said, one of the two officers became enraged — and the judge became his target. The officer screamed and cursed at the onlookers, some of whom were complaining about what they said was his violent treatment of the suspect, and then he focused on Justice Raffaele, who was wearing a T-shirt and jeans. The judge said the officer rushed forward and, using the upper edge of his hand, delivered a sharp blow to the judge’s throat that was like what he learned when he was trained in hand-to-hand combat in the Army.

The episode, Friday morning just after midnight — in which the judge says his initial complaint about the officer was dismissed by a sergeant, the ranking supervisor at the scene — is now the focus of investigations by the police Internal Affairs Bureau and the Civilian Complaint Review Board.
...

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/06/nyregion/justice-thomas-d-raffaele-says-police-officer-struck-him.html?_r=3&pagewanted=all

[nanabugg]

1. Karma is a bitch!!! nt

[Ian David]

2. "Oh, noes! The officer mercilessly beating that dude might need help! I'd better get back-up!"

"Oh, noes!!! The officer that mercilessly beat that dude, while I essentially aided and abetted, just mercilessly beat ME! WTF, dude!"

I hope the beating victim is going to be okay.

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. Takes a judge to make a complaint stick, sounds like.

[Vattel]

4. It helps. A senator's son or daughter usually gets things moving too.

[uponit7771]

5. WOW! Police in NY are out of control...they're not there to help that community cause it's the right

...thing to do. The culture is to take from the community including the peoples sense of security

[Bake]

6. Sigh ... just another bad apple ...

But the barrel is stinking ...

Cop picked the wrong guy to assault, I'd say.

Bake

[47of74]

7. Wow, that cop must have quite the penis

[47of74]

8. I wonder if the cop had it out for him?

Judge Raffaele volunteered to help gay couples get married when New York's marriage equality law took effect. I wonder if the cop saw this as a chance to get even with the judge for doing so.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/15/nyregion/judges-signing-up-for-sunday-duty-at-gay-weddings.html