A New York police officer seen on video violently shoving a young woman to the ground during a Brooklyn police brutality protest now faces criminal charges.
Video shows the officer forcefully shove the young woman during a May 29 protest over the killing of George Floyd. She struck the pavement and went to the emergency room. According to a reporter on the scene, the officer shouted obscenities at the woman before attacking her.
The officer, Vincent D’Andraia, is charged with assault, criminal mischief, harassment, and menacing, said Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, CNN reports.
“I fully support the long-held American tradition of non-violent protest. As District Attorney, I cannot tolerate the use of excessive force against anyone exercising this Constitutionally guaranteed right. This is especially true of those who are sworn to protect us and uphold the law,” Gonzalez said. ‘I am deeply troubled by this unnecessary assault. We will now seek to hold this defendant accountable.”
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The cop is one of two officers who have been suspended without pay from the NYPD for their actions at protests. The other suspended officer was seen pulling down a protester’s mask to pepper spray him.
Another officer, seen on a video opening a car door and striking a protester in Brooklyn on the same night, has been placed on modified duty — stripped of his gun and badge — and referred for disciplinary action after the Internal Affairs Bureau completed an investigation, according to the report.
