March 4, 2008
SI Cops Indicted in Halloween Teen Abduction
Two white Staten Island cops were indicted today for an incident last Halloween in which they allegedly handcuffed a black egg-throwing teen and drove him to a dark, secluded marshland he was stranded (the handcuffs were taken off). Initially, the cops were also accused of stripping him down to his shorts and kicking him.
The officers, Thomas Elliassen and Richard Danese, who are pleading not guilty, said they just wanted to "scare him" and later drove back to find the teen, Rayshawn Moreno, but he had run to a Burlington Coat Factory mall in the distance. Moreno apparently took off his clothes to avoid detection when running from the marsh.
Now the 14-year-old’s attorney is displeased with the 33 count indictment and says the cops should have been with kidnapping. He also says the grand jury should have been given the opportunity to declare it a hate crime. Before leaving Moreno behind on Halloween, one of the officers allegedly said, "We know you and all your little [N-word] friends talk about how you don't like us. We don't like you either." The officers also a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/nyregion/04staten.html?ref=nyregion">allegedly threatened to beat him.
Officer Danese is in more hot water: He now stands accused of using a sergeant's computer and log-in information to try to dig up dirt on Moreno and his father, James Hazel. Danese is charged with an additional felony, “computer trespass” punishable with up to four years in prison, and is suspended without pay. Both officers also face a maximum of four years for the top count of unlawful imprisonment. Moreno was never charged for the egg tossing, and he insists he was just throwing them at his friends.
Photograph of Danese and Elliassen from the Staten Island Advance
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The amount of hair gel used by someone as they appear in court goes a long way to my first inclinations. This is more outrageous, to me, than the Sean Bell case. Take a plea, and be happy you were not charged with kidnapping and hate crime enhancement.
another one of new york's finest.
they do have a screening process for police officers, right?
me and my white friens don't like cops either.
"Staten Island" cops or NYPD?
i hope they throw the book at these fat-faced fucks
More cops getting railroaded by the liberal Al Sharpton loving bastards just like the cops getting railroaded by that liberal asshole DA in Queens.
The stupid kid deserved it.
Sean Bell was another gangster wannabe who deserved what he got and his wife to be with the little welfare payment enhancers is just seeing dollar signs from that freak fat bigot Al Sharpton.
i honestly believe if the police officers were of colour everyone would be singing to a different tune.
i would really like to understand the rational behind why some people consider this a hate crime.
What's shameful is the way this Gothamist write-up is trying to sensationalize the case. It says they "kicked him" while the Advance says they only prodded him with their boots. Gothamist writes both that he was stripped to his boxers then later that he took off his shirt to avoid detection. If he had a shirt, then he wasn't only in boxers. Also, the Advance says he was in gym shorts, not underwear. Bulletin to Gothamist: people wear gym shorts in public all the time; it's not shameful.
Not to say the cops were in the right for what they actually did do, but this Gothamist article verges on "yellow journalism" of the kind I expect from the Post.
The comment that Danese apparently made was made after dropping the 14 year old off in the woods, but by its placement in the article, it makes it seem that he said that while he was leaving the courtroom. A little confusing.
Good thing he wasn't wearing briefs instead of boxers... at least he had a little more, uh, coverage.
@ Spiritof76 - thanks for your thoughts. There's varying coverage about the indictment, but many reports seem to suggest the indictment says Moreno was stripped by the police. However, it seems Moreno's lawyer says his client was threatened with beatings by the cops.
It's real simple. In any given white/italian/irish community on SI during Halloween night you'll find hordes of white/italian/irish kids destroying property with eggs, shaving cream, and toilet paper. I should know, I grew up in one of those neighborhoods.
Here's the million dollar lawsuit question: Would these officers do the same thing to one of those kids?