APNewsBreak: NYC inspector broke pepper spray rule

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

APNewsBreak: NYC inspector broke pepper spray rule

By COLLEEN LONG, Associated Press – 48 minutes ago

NEW YORK (AP) — An internal New York Police Department review has found an official violated department guidelines when he used pepper spray on Occupy Wall Street protesters last month, a person with knowledge of the investigation said Tuesday.

Deputy Inspector Anthony Bologna faces discipline of a loss of 10 vacation days after the Sept. 24 incident near Union Square, shortly after the now-global protests began in a tiny private plaza in lower Manhattan, the person said. The person had direct knowledge of the review but was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Video from the protests shows a small group of mostly women corralled by orange netting used by officers to control crowds. Bologna approaches and seemingly without warning blasted a cluster of women with pepper spray. Two of the women crumple on the sidewalk in pain. One screams.

The incident sparked outrage by demonstrators and a collection of online gawkers who were watching the protests. It also helped propel the movement into the national spotlight.

-snip-


Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ihRQnjDkKtibR55jLCk9KwQ8IHYQ?docId=77e39dbd59b64073bc7987af3f55cac6

[louis-t]

1. Uh, loss of 10 vacation days?

How about immediate dismissal? At least charged with assault?

[christx30]

4. Silly Louis...

The police are above such laws. We can take confort that Mr. Lunch Meat is going to be hard at work for an extra 10 days this year. Isn't that nice? Someone accused of pepper spray assault is going to spend more time in a position where he is prone to re-offend. Like someone accused of theft is going to have to take a few laps in Mr. Scrooge's money pit. Or someone accused of sexual assault being forced to hang out in a strip club.
We should feel lucky that he got that. Most of the time the thin blue line won't find anything wrong with what he did and dismiss it entirely.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

22. Not only that, he's gonna be an even worse violent goon

after having those vacation days taken away from him.

[christx30]

35. And, like someone below here said,

how do we verify that his vacation days are gone? It's not like someone is going to be checking.
And it doesn't really put any kind of disincentive to the rest of the police force to not do this kind of thing. "Spray some innocent people with pepperspray and I'll lose my vacation" is not as scary as "spray some innocent people with pepperspray and lose my job or go to jail"

[UnrepentantLiberal]

43. I was half joking, but yeah, this is the NYPD giving the middle finger to OWS

[Tsiyu]

59. So NYPD really ARE above the law

if I pepper-sprayed some innocent person I hate to think of what I'd be facing for assaulting that person.

But if i become a cop, I get a little slap on the wrist and I'm sent out to assault even MORE people?

WEll Let's all be cops!


Let's form an OWSPD!!!! We can do whatever we want then, just like the NYPD!!!!!



Obviously that's the answer - our own 99% police force!

[julian09]

81. He won't miss vacation days,he enjoys assaulting people more

another sadistic abusive cop getting away with bad behavior. Next time will be his third strike but they will put him on base anyway.

[malaise]

75. Can you fugging believe that?

Shakes head. :shrug:

[0rganism]

27. just be glad it wasn't inappropriate discharge of firearms!

"NO vacation days for you, Ofcr. Baloney! Now take this extra ammunition and go patrol those stinking, snitching protesters."

[TrollBuster9090]

51. I'll be very surprised if they dock him even ONE day's vacation.

That's the maximum penalty. They'll probably string this out until everybody forgets about it, and dock him half a days pay. Not even a letter of reprimand in his jacket.

(I say let all five of those girls pepper spray him back, and then call it even.)

[drmeow]

58. Each one separately

on 5 consecutive days.

[City Lights]

53. I know! That'll really teach him!

Bet he never does it again!

:eyes:

Absolutely pathetic.

[DLnyc]

67. More appropriate would be 1 to 5 years off work

served in prison on conviction for assault and battery.

Not holding my breath on that one, though.

DA's rarely prosecute cops, and if they are forced to, they don't work very hard to get convictions. A lot of it has to do with the fact that they depend on the cops every day to make there cases, so they are reluctant to go against (corrupt) system.

A good idea might be some sort of special prosecutor for cases like this.

[nichomachus]

93. How cruel can you be?

That's 10 days he won't be able to use his yacht -- that borders on cruel and unusual.

[mattvermont]

2. how can anybody

verify that the punishment is even leveled against him?
You bad boy, we are gonna have to punish you...nudge, nudge, wink wink

[Sanity Claws]

3. Loss of 10 vacation days for an assault?

that's not even a work suspension. Gee. The NYPD is soft on crime, if the crime is by the NYPD.

[julian09]

83. It was either that or ticker tape parade

[kestrel91316]

5. Criminal assault charges NOW. Lawsuit for violation of 1st Amendment rights NOW.

[avaistheone1]

8. Recommended.

kick

:kick:

[LaydeeBug]

21. preach. nt

[Lunabelle]

6. He should be arrested

He assaulted those women!

[47of74]

7. What should happen is that the white shirt be told...

...he has two choices.

First choice: 6 months in jail, a $10,000 fine, receiving a blast in the face of pepper spray from the young women he so callously sprayed with the nearest water bucket 150 feet away and no one to catch him, and a permanent reduction in rank to police officer with no possibility of promotion.
Second choice: Fired, prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, and loss of any pension due him.

[Demeter]

32. Second that!

We don't fire people who know how to shoot guns anymore...they tend to go postal.

[DeSwiss]

9. Oh yeah, that'll hurt.

- K&R

[malthaussen]

10. Ah, the wheels of justice...

How quickly they turn. And how flat are their tires.

-- Mal

[valerief]

11. He only loses vacation days but keeps his job? What is he, a banker? nt

[Demeter]

33. No, He's a Banker's Lackey

less than a friend, more than an ex-wife.

[cui bono]

57. No silly... a banker would get a $25mn bonus. n/t

[ixion]

12. And if the roles were reversed, and a protester had maced a cop

would he merely lose some 'vacation' days?

No. He would be in jail for assault, at best. And jail is where Mr. Bologna belongs.

[Demeter]

34. More likely dead.

[ixion]

71. yep, I would agree...

that's why I said "at best," because they'd be lucky to walk away with their life, knowing how cops react.

[truthisfreedom]

13. The punishment is a joke at best. He should be moved to a desk job. I hope a civil suit

is being filed against him and he's taken to the cleaners.

[Eric J in MN]

18. Two of the girls who were pepper-sprayed...

...have gotten lawyers and are planning to sue (I don't know if Anthony Bologna will be sued or just the city).

[Merlot]

14. Sounds like they're more upset that he got caught on tape

than by the fact that he assaulted these women.

[rhett o rick]

64. I think their initial review found it was a proper use of pepper spray. They changed their minds

because of YouTube.

[FreeBillClinton]

15. That was an assault. He should be prosecuted.

[appleannie1]

16. 10 VACATION days? Big friggin deal

[Kingofalldems]

17. Kick and Rec to the top

[beac]

19. Never was the phrase "adding insult to injury" more apt. Unbelieveable. n/t

[Ignis]

42. +1

[micraphone]

20. You can bet he is pissed.. so

Who d'ya think he's going to take it out on?

[Odin2005]

23. Typical, the pig gets a non-punishment slap on the wrist.

[tsuki]

36. He'll get ten personal days on the back end. nt

[Erose999]

89. Or a 10 day suspension with pay.

[Dawson Leery]

24. King Goomba belongs in prison!

[AsahinaKimi]

25. This puts him back on the street for ten more days

so he can brutalize people again.

[truthisfreedom]

26. Exactly. He should be stuck in a desk job awaiting trial.

Full force of the law.

[TBF]

45. Desk job? This criminal should be immediately dismissed and prosecuted. nt

[iamthebandfanman]

28. Great, give him more reasons to be angry/unstable

and put him back on the street..

that sounds reasonable...... lol

[Yon_Yonson]

29. Justice denied is corruption personified

[tavalon]

30. I'm always amazed at how many D'uhhh pieces end up in Latest Breaking

Water is wet, using pepper spray on peaceful demonstrators is wrong. Same, same.

[quakerboy]

31. Hopefully only half the story.

If a police officer murders someone, presumably they can be fired long before any conviction in court.

Lets hope that this is a case of that, he receives disciplinary action in regards to his job first, and then later the criminal charges and civil cases proceed.

Because otherwise, what just happened is an announcement that any NYC cop can walk up to a stranger or group of strangers, mace them in the face, walk away, and the only consequence would be a loss of some vacation time.

[peacetalksforall]

38. I think they went very light on him to show the judge and jury that they

think lightly of the assault, therefore the court should also.

Policemen like the one who struck his stick on the pavement and said that it was going to get a good workout 'today' will probably take up a collection for him to fly away to a resort for a couple of long weekends to compensate for the vacation. Let's plant the idea and maybe someone will video tape his fans presenting him with the tickets. With all due sarcasm.

[christx30]

39. Maybe if he does it AGAIN

we can expect some kind of actual diciplinary action? No. He'll just lose his employee discount card at the precinct cafeteria? Maybe if he shoots someone in the face for looking at him wrong, maybe we can expect some kind of punishment? Maybe they'll take away 4 sick days and he'll have to work through a lunch break?

[Eric J in MN]

62. He used pepper-spray again on innocent people the same day. NT

NT

[Fire Walk With Me]

37. Fine, he broke the rule and loses 10 days for that. Now what about assualt, battery, human suffering

???

[quakerboy]

46. +1

My thoughts exactly.

Broke the rule, ok, 10 days off your vacation. Do they have an additional punishment for abuse of force that comes later? When do the criminal charges get filed?

[me b zola]

72. that didn't get as many youtube hits

:(

[sakabatou]

40. That's BS.

[unkachuck]

41. termination....

....if this sausage can't remember the rules regarding the use of pepper spray, he certainly can't be expected to remember the rules regarding the use of firearms....

....termination, he's a public menace.

[rhett o rick]

44. I agree. THis has nothing to do with him breaking a rule. He demonstrated unnecessary violent

behavior. He has no business being a policeman.

[Fire Walk With Me]

48. Either he has no business being a policeman, or the entire nature of the police must be changed.

[rhett o rick]

63. Or both. nm

[Fire Walk With Me]

65. +1!

[Jester Messiah]

47. This opens him up to a civil suit, does it not?

His guilt has been admitted by the department, hence the discipline. The women he sprayed should now sue him into the poorhouse.

[lonestarnot]

60. If it were me, I would try to take it to the bank! But I'm no lawyer.

Damages may be the problem. Were there any permanent repercussions from being sprayed. Intentional infliction of emotional distress? Must be something.

[slay]

49. Loss of 10 vacation days?!?! Seriously???

man i hope anyone he sprayed SUES that fucker. he needs a month unpaid suspension - or preferably to be fired!!!

[TrollBuster9090]

50. 10 days vacation? I've got a better idea

A) This is just tossing a bone to the jackals. He faces "up to" ten days loss of vacation. They're hoping to string this out long enough so that everybody forgets, and then they'll do nothing. Maybe a small note of reprimand in his file.

And even if he did get the maximum penalty...ten days vacation?

B) FUCK THAT! Have him stand there with his eyes open and LET THOSE GIRLS PEPPER SPRAY HIM IN THE FACE. Then call it even.

That's my usual answer to police brutality. Forget the letters of reprimand and the three days suspension crap. If a police officer uses excessive force, just let the person he brutalized do the same thing back to him, and THEN call it even.

[Eric J in MN]

61. They're better than him. He likes to pepper-spray people. They don't. NT

NT

[dotymed]

52. Wow this POS shit will be represented by his Union for attacking

pro-Union citizens. That does show us that Unions will even assume until proven guilty, pure trash. They are making a judgement call but I think the FOP believes cops are above the law.

[NICO9000]

54. Now if you or I had behaved like he did

we'd be in jail in a heartbeat.

fuck amerikkka

[Taverner]

55. Fry the Bologna!

[Hubert Flottz]

56. He only used that pepper spray because he'd forgotten his...

George W Bush model Water Board.

[Guilded Lilly]

66. Shaking my head. There really are no surprises in this world anymore. PATHETIC.

[Little Tich]

68. I don't want to defend mr Bologna's actions, but

his actions probably reflect the training he's had in how to handle protesters. The footage shows people being dragged around, and a net is used to herd them. The pepper spraying is probably in the repertoire for potentially violent protesters, and that was most probably what he had trained for. He stepped out of line, for which he was disciplined, but the real culprit is the New York Police Department that is incapable of handling peaceful protests.

[markpkessinger]

69. He's an inspector, a supervisor, and should be well aware of the guidelines n/t

[Name removed]

70. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Fokker Trip]

73. What...no..cops are state armed thugs? Say it ain't so.

No one becomes a police officer who isn't an authoritarian or an authoritarian follower. Though no doubt some of them do believe that they will be able to do good, especially the young ones.

I keep seeing folks defending cops, saying that they are just following orders.

Umm...where have I read that before? That defense was outlawed at Nuremberg.
Have a good think boys in blue, you should worry about what's going to happen to you all when this uprising eventually turns violent. In a month or ten years from now, eventually it will lead to bloodshed, I surely don't condone it but I also do think that it will be the eventual outcome of a mass uprising by the citizenry. Does anyone think that it won't come to this?

The Patriot act wasn't written to stop terrorism.

[sce56]

74. Net recommendation: +100 votes (Your vote: +1)

Well I hope that one woman's lawyer can actually get somewhere with her lawsuit against him let the NYPD punish him it will be just a slap on the wrist!

[pnorman]

76. OCW---K & R!

n/t

[Javaman]

77. white shirts are the new brownshirts...

the loss of 10 days vacation amounts to nothing after internal review.

he will get them back later on.

you can bet on it.

[ooglymoogly]

78. A slap on the hand may be quite continental, but it don't pay for

the damage done to democracy and the constitution.

[Vinnie From Indy]

79. Trust me - the NYPD is madder at Bologna for getting caught on film

than they are at his assault.

[fascisthunter]

80. How about He get Sprayed in the eyes with Pepper Spray in Public

THIS is why people lose respect for the Police FOrce as a whole. This is no punishment for what he did... this is a ridiculous admission by the Police Force in NYC to essentially opt out of their duty to the citizenry by protecting their thugs from justice.

[Ikonoklast]

82. "I got caught assaulting peaceful protesters with chemical weapons..."

"...and all I got was slap on the wrist. HAHAHAHHAHAHAAAAA!!!!!"

[leveymg]

84. Bologna put OWS on the map. Thanks, Tony. You've been extremely valuable to the cause.

I think we should all chip in and reward him with a 10-day free trip to Disneyland.

[Iggo]

85. He also broke the Assault & Battery rule.

But why quibble?

[Downtown Hound]

86. You know, I've had jobs where if I'm even the least bit rude to a customer

even when they're totally acting like a shithead, I get fired. But if you're a cop and you illegally spray somebody with pepper spray, you lose your sick days. That's it.

Gawd bless America.

[DaveJ]

87. I would lose my job for showing such incompetence

He at least should not be allowed to carry a weapon. He probably did too many drugs when he was in narcotics.

[Dont call me Shirley]

88. Should be 10 days, months or years in prison!

[Dover]

90. Sooo, if a protester spray a NYPD cop with pepper spray, they'd get the same?

When is there going to be some sense of true justice for those who abuse power in this country?

[iandhr]

91. Not acceptable

But it was wrong to post where his children went to school on the internet. You can not hold children responsible for a wrongful action by their parent.

[DirkGently]

92. Vacation days? What would happen if she'd pepper sprayed him?

[TNLib]

94. I hope those ladies sue the NYPD

nt

[TNLib]

95. I hope those ladies sue the NYPD

nt