Investigators find West Palm Beach officer used excessive force in arrest
A West Palm Beach Police officer faces a felony aggravated battery charge after investigators said he used an unnecessary amount of force during an arrest by punching a man in the head 11 times and kneeling on his head.
Nicholas Salvatore Lordi, 34, of Palm Beach Gardens, turned himself into the Palm Beach County Jail on Tuesday night, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which began investigating the case in May 2020.
On Nov. 1, 2019, Lordi, who is white, and West Palm Beach Police Officer Jamesloo Charles went to the Food Plus Food Stores at 5501 Broadway to investigate a trespassing incident, an FDLE probable cause affidavit says. There, the officers encountered John Monroque, then 62, who is Black.
While Charles checked Monroque’s identification at his police cruiser, Lordi began speaking to him. A minute later, Lordi moved Monroque onto the hood of the other officer’s car, the affidavit says, and pushed Monroque’s head onto the car.
Monroque resisted as the officers tried to put him in handcuffs. Lordi then pulled Monroque onto the ground where the struggle continued, the affidavit says, with Lordi lying on his back and Monroque lying partly on top of him.
With his left fist, Lordi punched Monroque in the head and face six times as he held Monroque in a headlock with his other arm, the affidavit says. Monroque did not hit back.
Lordi then rolled Monroque over onto his stomach and sat on top of him, the affidavit says.
Monroque sustained another five blows to his head and face as Lordi threw punches with both hands, the affidavit says. Monroque shielded his face with his left hand.
A bystander intervened and blocked Monroque from Lordi. Charles then moved the bystander out of the way, the affidavit says, and grabbed his handcuffs from his belt.
Lordi sat on top of Monroque, holding his head against the ground, the affidavit says. The second officer placed Monroque in handcuffs, briefly ending the struggle with Lordi.
For nearly a minute, Monroque didn’t move. He would later tell FDLE investigators he was unconscious.
But the struggle quickly resumed minutes later. Lordi knelt on Monroque’s head with his right knee for 14 seconds, the affidavit says, after telling Monroque to “stop spitting” and “stop your s— man, just stop” as he laid handcuffed on the ground.
George Floyd, who was Black, was killed by Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, after Chauvin held his knee on Floyd’s neck for 9 minutes.
Monroque was transported to St. Mary’s Medical Center after the encounter, the affidavit says. His medical records showed he had a broken nose.
Lordi told FDLE investigators that he went to the food store after receiving a call about a “suspect loitering” who was “intoxicated” and was asked to leave the store and refused. He said Monroque was disrespectful and ignored commands, records say.
The officers needed to use force, Lordi told investigators, because Monroque attempted to grab Charles’ magazine during their encounter. Lordi also said Monroque laid on his hands and refused to put them behind his back.
But video evidence disproved Lordi’s statements, the affidavit says. Monroque’s
hands were above his body after Lordi took him to the ground.
Lordi said he gave “a few softening strikes to [Monroque’s] face” while he sat on top of him, the affidavit says. He told investigators he could not remember whether Monroque attempted to punch him.
After the officers handcuffed Monroque, Lordi told investigators, “No more force was needed. No more force was used,” which was also refuted by video evidence, the affidavit says.
Approaching three years later, Monroque has persistent back issues, he said at an afternoon news conference Wednesday with his attorneys Sue-Ann Robinson and Lee Merritt and his sister Imoya Monroque.
Monroque spent 20 days in jail and was charged with trespassing, battery on an officer and felony resisting charges, Robinson said. It took a year for the cases to be dismissed.
“I feel good now there’s justice,” Monroque said.
Lordi has an “extensive history of complaints and excessive force,” Robinson said.
Internal Affairs history records show Lordi has been disciplined for his conduct toward the public, failing to be obedient to laws and directives and violating the department’s code of conduct and ethics. He was involved in 15 use-offorce incidents and 12 vehicle pursuits since 2015, the record says, as of March 2020.
It was not immediately clear how long Lordi has worked for the department.
Robinson said she hopes there may be charges forthcoming for Charles who was at the scene that day and did not intervene and additional charges for Lordi for falsely describing what happened in a sworn affidavit, Robinson said.
Video evidence disproved part of Lordi’s story of what happened in his struggle with Monroque. Documentation of the incident written by Lordi is “wrought with lies,” Robinson said, and that false documentation of what happened that day has affected Monroque’s ability to find housing and get medical treatment.
“This officer has prepared reports and lied and that’s not addressed,” Robinson said. “We have to repair John Monroque’s entire life based on the lies that were perpetrated against him.”
That video evidence, Imoya Monroque said, is still hard for her brother to watch.
“He has not even watched it since,” she said. “[It’s] very difficult for him to even talk about it.”
Robinson said she has not seen the results of any Internal Affairs investigation. It is not immediately clear whether the second officer has been investigated or disciplined for his involvement in the incident.
In a statement Wednesday, West Palm Beach Police said the department launched a use-of-force investigation immediately after the incident and asked FDLE to conduct an outside investigation once additional evidence was found.
“The West Palm Beach Police Department is committed to accountability and transparency for the citizens we are sworn to serve,” the statement says. “Nicholas Lordi was placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the court case, pursuant to the collective bargaining agreement.”
Lordi has been released after posting a $5,000 bond, court records show.