Despicable.Two police officers who knocked over a 75-year-old man at a protest in Buffalo, New York were charged Saturday morning with second-degree assault, a felony due to the man's older age.
The officers, Aaron Torgalski, 39, and Robert McCabe, 32, both pleaded not guilty and remain suspended without pay. If convicted, they could be charged with a maximum of seven years in prison.
Dozens of people, many in police uniforms and “blue lives matter” flag t-shirts, crowded outside the courthouse Saturday morning. They erupted in cheers when the two officers left the building after being released on their own recognizance.
Buzzfeed
In video that was captured by local NPR station WBFO, dozens of officers in riot gear were seen clearing out Niagara Square to enforce the city's curfew on Thursday. The 75-year-old man, a peace activist named Martin Gugino, can be seen walking up to the two officers.
Officers can be heard yelling, "Move!" at the man, and then "Push him back!"
The two officers then shove him, one using his baton to do so. Gugino stumbles backward and falls on the sidewalk, his head hitting the pavement with an audible thud. He is then seen lying on the ground completely still, blood pouring out his ear.
The officer with the baton can then be seen starting to kneel down towards Gugino, but another officer pulls him back up by his vest and pushes him to continue walking with the rest of the police.
Gugino was treated at the hospital for a head injury, loss of consciousness, and bleeding from the right ear, and "remains hospitalized in critical condition," The Erie County District Attorney's office said in a press release.
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