In our last post, we talked about the recent legal proceedings related to the arrests of four college football players involved in the investigation of the Pace University student and football player who was fatally shot by police. In this post, we will discuss the opposing stories of what happened on the night of October 17.
Police say the shooting of the 20-year-old Pace University student occurred after the student drove away from a police officer and hit two officers in the process. The fatal shooting of the student occurred near the scene of a disturbance outside of a bar 25 miles north of New York City. Passengers of the young man’s car contradict the police story.
The response time and actions that led to the 20-year-old receiving medical assistance are also in conflict. Officers say the young man received treatment within three to five minutes of the shooting, but other witnesses allege the young man did not receive medical assistance for up to 15 minutes. According to police the young man’s four teammates allegedly interfered with the administration of medical assistance, however, the defense attorney representing the four college players says officers committed police brutality when the young man’s friends tried to help him.
According to the teammates’ criminal defense attorney, one of the 20-year-old’s teammates knew CPR. The teammate begged with police to provide assistance but police put a gun to his ribs and told him to back away or he would be next. Two of the other teammates were stunned with tasers when they attempted to help their friend. The fourth teammate was arrested for allegedly breaking a store window in the flurry of events that occurred after the shooting. Three of the four teammates were charged with disorderly conduct for interfering with the medical assistance of their friend. Two of the teammates were charged with resisting arrest and one teammate was charged with criminal mischief. The teammates’ defense attorney is seeking the dismissal of the charges.
Source: The Washington Post, “Slain Man’s NY Teammates: Drop Charges Against Us,” Jim Fitzgerald, 11/3/10