Cop holstered gun after my pal took out cell phone: lawsuit

Cop holstered gun after my pal took out cell phone: lawsuitNew York Post – by Salim Algar

A Brooklyn construction worker claims a spooked NYPD cop pulled his service revolver on him and holstered it only after a pal whipped out a cellphone and threatened to record the incident, a $5 million Brooklyn federal lawsuit alleges.

Mark Fullerton, 46, pulled onto the shoulder of North Conduit Avenue near a Shell gas station in July 2013 to stabilize building materials in the back of his truck when Officer Michael Fitzgibbon ordered him into the vehicle, according to the suit.  

When he did so, the officer began to slam the door on his ankle before spraying Mace on him and punching him repeatedly in the face, according to court papers.

Without provocation, Fitzgibbon pulled out his gun and pointed it at Fullerton and his co-worker, Michael Webber, and began threatening to shoot them, the suit claims.

But when Webber pulled out his cell phone and told Fitzgibbon he was recording the incident, the officer put his gun away and quickly backed off, according to court papers.

“The fact is that when that cell phone came out this unstable officer stopped what he was doing,” said Fullerton’s attorney, David Schwartz. “Mark had a gun pointed at his head. He was afraid for his life.”

Fearful that the cop was going to open fire, the two men say they sped away from the scene and drove straight to the 113th Precinct to report the incident and protect themselves, according to the suit.

But just as Fullerton completed his statement to a desk officer, Fitzgibbon called in a different version of the story and the contractor was placed in handcuffs.

Fitzgibbon claimed that Fullerton, who had never been arrested before, closed the truck door on him and dragged him across several lanes of traffic.

The father of three was charged with felony assault on a police officer and misdemeanor leaving the scene raps.

But a Queens grand jury didn’t buy Fitzgibbon’s version of events and refused to charge him with assault, instead opting for misdemeanor leaving the scene raps that are still pending.

Schwartz said his client never denied taking off out of fear of Fitzgibbon’s next move.

City Law Department reps said they are reviewing the lawsuit.

http://nypost.com/2014/10/22/construction-worker-spooks-cop-with-phone-amid-attack-lawsuit/

One thought on “Cop holstered gun after my pal took out cell phone: lawsuit

  1. Nothing new about police putting a gun to a citizens head on there little I don’t likes. Then covering for there own. Been there had that done before. Or even trying to run over you with there squad cars as you stand on your own property for no reason at all but they can take you down by surprise. Even with witness they will do nothing about such people on our streets as they are. Have witness to that as well if they wish to press charges of attempted murder on the cop. But NO they just ignore what they are. Such is the American police in America.

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