By Carlos Miller
Patrick Pogan’s promising career as a New York City police officer lasted a mere three weeks before he was stripped of his badge and placed on probation.
The 23-year-old son of a highly respected NYPD detective was caught on video body slamming a bicyclist in Times Square for no apparent reason during a Critical Mass bike ride last July.
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Pogan charged the cyclist with attempted assault, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Christoper Long, a 29-year-old New Jersey man, ended up spending 26 hours in jail.
Pogan would have gotten away with his crime had it not been for the anonymous Youtube video which proved that it was actually him who assaulted Long.
Now the aggressive cop is facing up to four years in prison for falsifying business records, filing a false instrument, third-degree assault, second-degree harassment and making a punishable false written statement.
The video is so blatant that I won’t even use the word allegedly in the above sentence. He is due in court on Feb. 4.
Shockingly, the NYPD has yet to dismiss Pogan despite the overwhelming evidence that he abused his power. Apparently, family ties within the department carries a degree of protection.
Assistant District Attorney Richard Buckheit said Pogan, whose father is a retired detective, was suspended from the police force. Because he is a probationary officer, Pogan could be dismissed from the force even if he is cleared of all criminal charges.
And Pogan’s lawyer said that the officer actually directed Long to stop because he was “pedaling recklessly down Seventh Avenue”, according to Newsday.
“He saw the individual in this case violate the laws he was instructed to enforce and he took appropriate police action,” London said after the arraignment. “He didn’t randomly go after this guy.”
Sure, and Long also rammed his bike into the officer, as he stated in his arrest report. The Youtube video has received almost 2 million views since it was posted online July 27th.
It is unclear whether Pogan’s uniformed partner, who clearly witnessed the incident, will also be charged for not reporting the incident.
Another officer, Sgt. Timothy Horohoe, is also under investigation for excessive force against citizens during a Critical Mass ride which was also caught on video.
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6 responses so far ↓
1 Real Estate Feast--South Florida real estate blog // Dec 18, 2008 at 7:04 AM
Thanks for this post, I hadn’t seen that video. Well, all I can say is “wow”. I imagine that all this kind of stuff has always gone on, but before the ubiquity of video cameras, it went unnoticed. The good thing is that now the unprofessional police officers will be forced out of service.
2 Carlos Miller // Dec 18, 2008 at 12:59 PM
The lesson here is that small digital cameras, whether they are still or video cameras, have become like the American Express card.
Never leave home without one.
Thanks for reading!
3 Jeremy Jojola // Dec 18, 2008 at 2:28 PM
Excellent post Carlos. I always have a small camera with me, locked and loaded to shoot any video on a whim.
This story proves that the camera doesn’t lie and protects the public. Not only do cameras protect the public, but they also protect police too.
Dashcams in police units are often used to back up an officer’s story.
The camera can be your best friend or your worst enemy.
Great post.
The officer got what he deserved.
4 Carlos Miller // Dec 18, 2008 at 3:52 PM
Thanks, Jeremy.
If the officer acted like that three weeks into the job, imagine what he would have done during a whole career?
5 genewitch // Dec 19, 2008 at 11:49 PM
my girlfriend and i carry at least 1 camera wherever we go, if not 2 or 3
Thanks to a certain florida resident…
6 M.M. // Dec 27, 2008 at 3:38 AM
I say fire the asshole..I believe he even laughs after knocking down the cyclist…if it were Bruce Lee on a bike, the cop wouldn’t dare touch him.
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