Share
News

Officers Charged with Assault After Pushing 75-Year-Old Man

Share

Two Buffalo police officers were charged with assault Saturday, prosecutors said, after a video showed them shoving a 75-year-old protester in recent demonstrations over the death of George Floyd.

Robert McCabe and Aaron Torgalski, who surrendered Saturday morning, pleaded not guilty to second-degree assault. They were released without bail.

McCabe, 32, and Torgalski, 39, “crossed a line” when they shoved the man down hard enough for him to crack his head on the ground, Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said at a news conference, calling the victim “a harmless 75-year-old man.”

The officers had been suspended without pay Friday after a TV crew captured the confrontation the night before near the end of protests.

If convicted of the felony assault charge, they face up to seven years in prison.

Phone messages were left on Saturday with their lawyers.

The footage shows the man, identified as longtime activist Martin Gugino, approaching a line of helmeted officers holding batons as they clear demonstrators from Niagara Square around the time of an 8 p.m. curfew.

Two officers push Gugino backward, and he hits his head on the pavement. Blood spills as officers walk past. One officer leans down to check on the injured man before another officer urges the colleague to keep walking.



The police officers “knew this was bad,” Flynn said of the video. “Look at their body language.”

Do you think assault charges against these officers are appropriate?

The video of the encounter sparked outrage online as demonstrators take to cities across the country to protest racial injustice sparked by the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after a white police officer pressed a knee into his neck for several minutes.

“I think there was criminal liability from what I saw on the video,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a briefing Saturday. “I think what the mayor did and the district attorney did was right, and I applaud them for acting as quickly as they did.”

“What we saw was horrendous and disgusting, and I believe, illegal,” he added.

But dozens of Buffalo police officers who were angered over their fellow officers’ suspensions stepped down from the department’s crowd control unit Friday.

Related:
25-Year-Old Missing Person Case Solved After Nonverbal Man Is Brought to Hospital

The resigning officers did not leave their jobs altogether.

Several off-duty officers gathered on Saturday outside the courthouse in a show of support for the accused officers.

Flynn said he understood their concern and pointed out that he’s also prosecuting protesters “who have turned into agitators” and “need to be dealt with as well.”

“There will be some who say that I’m choosing sides here,” he said. “And I say that’s ridiculous. I’m not on anyone’s side.”

The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.

Truth and Accuracy

Submit a Correction →



We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.

Tags:
, , , , , ,
Share
The Associated Press is an independent, not-for-profit news cooperative headquartered in New York City. Their teams in over 100 countries tell the world’s stories, from breaking news to investigative reporting. They provide content and services to help engage audiences worldwide, working with companies of all types, from broadcasters to brands. Photo credit: @AP on Twitter
The Associated Press was the first private sector organization in the U.S. to operate on a national scale. Over the past 170 years, they have been first to inform the world of many of history's most important moments, from the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the bombing of Pearl Harbor to the fall of the Shah of Iran and the death of Pope John Paul.

Today, they operate in 263 locations in more than 100 countries relaying breaking news, covering war and conflict and producing enterprise reports that tell the world's stories.
Location
New York City




Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.

Conversation