Federal civil jury rules against Pittsburgh police officer

Plaintiff wins on claim of excessive force

A Pittsburgh police officer was found liable in federal court Thursday of using excessive force while off-duty in subduing a teenager who had smashed pumpkins in front of the officer’s home and rung his doorbell and fled.

An eight-member jury in U.S. District Court ruled that Colby Neidig, 43, who was promoted to sergeant in January, committed assault and battery after chasing down Shane McGuire, now 20, of Munhall.

The jury awarded Mr. McGuire, who suffered a broken nose, $75,000 for his civil rights claim and $51,093.21 in compensatory damages.

According to Mr. McGuire’s lawsuit, filed in 2014, he and four friends were walking along Cassabill Drive in New Homestead on Nov. 10, 2012, when they started smashing leftover Halloween pumpkins that they came across, including some in front of Sgt. Neidig’s home.

Mr. McGuire admitted that, on a dare, he then ran onto the porch and rang the doorbell. He said he did not know the homeowner was a police officer.

After he rang the doorbell a few times, he told the jury, he ran and Sgt. Neidig chased him down and repeatedly punched him in the face, saying, “I work in Wilkinsburg. I deal with worse [expletive] than you.”

Mr. McGuire’s lawyer, Mark Eck, described it as “stupid teenagers doing stupid teenage things” but said his client did not fight the officer and did not deserve to be beaten so badly he ended up in a hospital.

Paul Krepps, the attorney for Sgt. Neidig, said that his client was responding to a violent pounding on his door, as if someone were trying to break in, and that when he caught up to Mr. McGuire, the youth squared up to fight. He said Sgt. Neidig punched him only once to subdue him.

On Jan. 19 — National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day — Sgt. Neidig, who has 12 years of experience, was one of two Pittsburgh police officers promoted to sergeant in a ceremony with Mayor Bill Peduto and then-acting police Chief Scott Schubert in the City-County Building.

Public Safety spokeswoman Sonya Toler said the department is reviewing the decision and had no comment Thursday night.