Paralyzed Man Sues City, Says Cop Pushed Him Off Roof

A Brooklyn man is suing the city for an unspecified sum over an altercation with a rookie NYPD officer that turned him into a paraplegic. Shawn Lewis says officer Jason Boreman shoved him off the roof a building in 2005 after he ran from police who were intervening in an incident involving his ex-girlfriend. Lewis's lawyer says that after Boreman caught Lewis, he asked, "What are you doing running from the police?" and shoved him in the chest, sending Lewis on his spine-severing tumble off the roof. Boreman denies pushing Lewis, and says he was actually hanging over the side of the building and lost his grip. Another officer involved, Sgt. John Marchello, testified that he was on the roof but didn't see what happened; when he later approached Lewis on the ground, Machello said, "Police, don't move!" To which Lewis responded, "I can't move." His lawyer asserts the rookie cop was "asserting his authority," but city attorney Susan Scharfstein tells the Daily News Lewis admitted to Internal Affairs that he fell accidentally.