Outraged citizens call out the police
Supporters at Albany rally demand justice for alleged victims of beating
There were still marks on Armando Sanchez’s face — the scars, he said, from where Albany Police Officer Luke Deer had struck him with his fists and baton three weeks ago.
“They could have killed us,” Sanchez said. “I thank God I’m alive.”
Community members outraged by recent evidence of alleged police misconduct during a mid-march confrontation in West Hill rallied Monday evening and called for the officers to be fired and arrested — or at minimum barred from patrolling the neighborhood.
Monday’s gathering was held at the Frank Chapman Memorial Institute, less than three blocks from the scene of the March 16 incident that last week resulted in the arrest of one officer and the suspension without pay of two others.
The rally, which attracted roughly 100 people, was an indication that the police department will have a hard time repairing its relationship with many residents.
Speakers called for the arrest and termination of the officers who took part that night, as well as the public release of their names and badge numbers. A list of demands distributed at the rally said the officers should not “be allowed to work or patrol in any part of the predominantly black community in the City of Albany.”
All three men who were allegedly beaten by officers that night spoke at the rally, calling the incident “chaotic” and “horrifying.”
“We just want justice to be served,” said Mario Gorostiza, 26. “That’s it.”
Marquinn Jennings of the group Justice Or Else made a connection between last month’s incident and the shooting last August of a teenager who was running from an Albany detective.
“If you remember, we were here last year for brother Ellazar Williams,” Jennings said, referring to the 19-year-old who was left paralyzed by the shooting. “Now we are back for more police misconduct.”
Also Monday, Officer Luke Deer, who was arrested last week on charges of felony assault and misdemeanor official misconduct, waived a preliminary hearing after being expected to appear in City Court. The district attorney’s office has six months to present the case to a grand jury for a possible indictment.
So far, Deer is the only officer facing criminal charges in connection with the incident, but police leaders say other arrests are possible.
Two other officers, including Matthew Seeber, have been suspended. The third officer’s identity has not been revealed.
Community members at the rally said all officers present should face discipline. “Everyone that was at the scene that night lost the trust of the public,” Albany Councilman Derek Johnson said of the officers.
A criminal complaint filed in City Court against Deer, who joined the department in 2014, accuses him of using his baton to hit Sanchez in the face and head during an attack that, according to the charges, was unjustified. The assault caused bleeding and bruises, the complaint states.
Sanchez, Gorostiza and Lee Childs, 42, were initially charged with various offenses, including inciting a riot, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, obstruction of governmental administration and endangering the welfare of a child.
Those charges were dropped last week after Deer’s arrest and the release of several minutes of police body camera footage. Another video, shot by a witness and posted on social media, was brought to the attention of Albany Police Chief Eric Hawkins, prompting the investigation.
“If not for that video and those body cameras, these brothers would not be right here,” said Anthony Muhammad of the Nation of Islam. “They probably would have been put in jail.”
Childs was allegedly beaten after Seeber kicked in the front door of his home; he was pulled out of the building by Seeber and another unidentified officer.
“They didn’t give us a chance to do anything,” Childs said at the rally. “They came with an agenda and just kicked it in.”
The video showed that once Childs was hauled outside, at least two officers began beating and kicking him as they took him into custody.
“It is my personal opinion that Chief Eric Hawkins is working hard to address the problems at the Albany Police Department,” said Merton Simpson, Albany County Legislator of District 2. “But clearly there are problems related to organizational culture and bias. The problems of the APD cannot be adequately addressed by training — it is a question of hearts and minds.”
Deer’s lawyer, Michael Mcdermott, told the Times Union last week that the officer had “perceived Mr. Sanchez as a threat,” and that the last time officers had responded to the house they had allegedly been threatened. He said they believed it to be a gathering place for “known felons.”
“I do think that it was their intention, when they arrived at that location, that if the conduct was the same as the earlier calls they planned on making an arrest for criminal nuisance,” Mcdermott said. “Obviously, the video is disturbing — but it’s snippets of an overall situation that we haven’t been given all the particulars on.”
Community members at the rally said all officers present should face discipline. “Everyone that was at the scene that night lost the trust of the public,” Albany Councilman Derek Johnson said of the officers.