Bronx Student, Arrested For His Friend's Crime, Suing City

A Bronx student who was arrested and imprisoned for 40 hours by the NYPD for a crime his friend had confessed to doing is filing a $1 million lawsuit against the city. Bryan Dale, 19, says he had to spend 20 months in courtrooms trying to clear his name for breaking a car windshield with a rock, while his friend was never prosecuted despite his admission. "The NYPD and district attorney basically decided to pretend the confession by the guilty party didn't exist. It really defies common sense," said Neil Wollerstein, Dale's attorney.

Dale is suing for false arrest, malicious prosecution and civil rights violations for the 2009 incident. In July of that year, he says he was hanging out with friends late one night along Riverdale Avenue in the Bronx when one of the friends threw the rock at the car—the friend was angry about a car's owner dating his sister. The teens scattered, but police arrived shortly, and picked up Dale. "About 30 minutes later, the boy who broke the windshield came into the precinct with his mother and confessed," Dale told ABC.

Not only that: the teen wrote out a written and signed confession saying he smashed the window because the car's owner was going out with his sister. At first, both Dale and the friend were moved to Bronx Central Booking; but the friend was let out and not prosecuted, while police allegedly pressured Dale to take a plea deal for a crime he didn't commit, which he refused. Instead he was officially charged with criminal mischief. Dale says he had to go to monthly court dates for nearly two years before a judge acquitted him: "I had to go to court like some criminal. I was embarrassed in front of my professors and my boss when I had to miss tests and work days."

In a statement to ABC, the Bronx DA's office said they went forward with the case because "the owner of the car knew Bryan's name and identified him, even though someone else took responsibility."

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By Ben Yakas in News on May 25, 2011 6:22 PM

Comments [rss]

Kimberley Truelove

The only thing he should be entitled to is lost wages. So add up all the time he spent in court "clearing his name" and tally up his hourly wage (if he has one) and send him on his way.

TakeThePledge

he says he was hanging out with friends late one night along Riverdale Avenue in the Bronx
that's about all I needed to read.

BoogieDown

Yeah, that Riverdale is a real hardcore ghetto. A ghetto of middle- and upper middle-class white people, that is. Rube.

MEDICNYC

So if it said "he was hanging out with friends late one night on Houston/Bowery" you would think it's an atrocity? What is bad about the neighborhood that Riverdale Ave is in? I'm pretty sure all you needed to read was "Bronx."

Rheinheart

I fail to see where his lawsuit comes from. He admittedly was part of
the group who went to the mans house and threw a rock through his car
window. After fleeing the scene police apprehended him, after a
positive ID by the victim he was booked. He was put through the justice
system and there the confession by his friend was also presented to a
judge causing him to be acquitted of the crime. At 19 years old and
aspiring to go to John Jay you would think he would be aware that the
justice system isn't like getting in trouble with your parents, once you
become involved with it you have to play out the process until you get
your day in court. At 19 you are far too old to think that being with a
group of people that commits a crime and then running from the crime
scene is just a childish prank.Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_...

Bruce Goldensteinberg

Here's a warning to young punks - if your friends commit crime, you may do the time. Therefore, if you're smart, you'll ditch your friends who are thugs. Otherwise, you've been warned!

ItchyGoiter

It's not just the DA... don't forget the judge(s).

zombiebob

Can we start sending the DA to jail for malicious prosecution???
the answer should be YES!!!!
F the DA, F all DAs, they only care about their record!

matt gordon

The goal is not to "solve" cases. The goal is to "close" and "win" cases. The statue of Lady Justice is blindfolded so she can't see how the "system" has turned into a circus.