Homeless man punched, dragged off train by NYPD has charges dropped
Charges were dropped against a straphanger accused of assaulting an officer after bodycam footage showed the cop punching him and dragging him off a train.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the dismissal last week of the remaining resisting arrest charge against Joseph Troiano, 30, who had cuffs slapped on him May 25 after a confrontation with two cops.
Troiano was originally charged with second-degree assault and resisting arrest after officers Adonis Long and Shimul Saha allegedly tried to remove him from the No. 6 at the East 51st Street-Lexington Avenue station a little after midnight for occupying more than one seat, according to the criminal complaint.
The officers said he had shoved them and kicked Long’s right hand when they tried to arrest him. Long said he sustained swelling and substantial pain from the blow to his knuckles and couldn’t open and close his hand.
But a few weeks later, shocking bodycam footage emerged of Long pummeling the 30-year-old homeless man who refused to get off the train. Long is first seen reaching toward Troiano, who swats him away and says, “Don’t touch me!”
The officer is seen trying to grab him again, and Troiano resists, saying, “Get off of me.” Long then punches him twice in the face, knocking off his glasses, then drags him off the train, cuffs him and pepper-sprays him.
The video shows the cops pushing Troiano against the subway platform wall, as he pleads for help and asks, “Why are you hitting me?”
A sobbing and bloodied Troiano was transported to the hospital. After prosecutors obtained the disturbing footage, they moved to dismiss the top assault charge in July.
Saha had also told prosecutors conflicting stories about Long’s injuries — describing a broken finger, a broken wrist and a broken arm, according to court papers.
Police Commissioner Dermot Shea previously said Long would not be disciplined for the incident.
The Legal Aid Society, which is representing Troiano, has called for the firing of both officers and said the misdemeanor resisting arrest charge should have been dropped months ago.
“It is unconscionable that the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, along with Mayor [Bill] de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner Shea, absolved officers Adonis Long and Shimul Saha of any wrongdoing, despite clear video showing how the pair singled out our client and then resorted to violence on first impulse,” said Legal Aid staff lawyer Edda Ness.