Defense: Officers in beating did their best under stress

The defense for three Boynton Beach police officers accused of beating up a suspect and lying about it say the men were doing the best they could in a highly stressful and potentially dangerous situation.

After three days of testimony in the men’s federal trial, witnesses for the prosecution have told jurors that the officers’ per- formance during the August 2014 chase and arrest was less than ideal.

Fellow law enforcement officers walked jurors through video footage of the event and testified that the officers appear to have violated department policies and not followed the training they received.

But on cross-examination, the defense attorneys are trying to whittle away at that damaging testimony.

The defense’s questions focused on getting the experts to acknowledge that the video, shot from a helicopter several hundred feet above, does not show what the officers on the ground were reacting to and the possible dangers they perceived.

After Boynton Beach Sgt. Sedrick Aiken, the department’s former head of training, told the jury about all the negatives, defense attorneys confronted him with any number of scenarios that could have been unfolding on the ground but are not evident on the video.

“It’s possible,” Aiken responded over and over again to the defense questions.

The clear suggestion from the defense: There are too many unknowns and uncertainties to prove the officers used excessive force and hold the officers