Today five people who were arrested during a melee with police outside Tammany Hall nightclub in the Lower East Side will appear in court to fight a variety of charges including rioting, resisting arrest, and assault on a police officer. You'll recall that the June 29th incident, which was videotaped from a couple of different angles, occurred after a record release party for "Monumental," the new album from hip hop duo Smif N Wessun and Pete Rock. Supporters of the arrested individuals—who have been dubbed the "Monumental Five"—say the cops' were determined to crack some skulls.
The NYPD claims that officers responded to the location at the club's request because of overcrowding inside the venue, and during the ensuing fracas, five officers sustained injuries ranging from a broken nose to a broken front tooth, DNAinfo reports. Tammany Hall management has not yet responded to our requests for comment on the incident, but the website for Monumental 5 tells a very different story from the NYPD, dontcha know? According to witnesses and a lawyer for the arrestees, the responding officers provoked the violence:
The sold-out event... was peaceful on the inside and outside. Earlier in the evening some guests wanted to enter Tammany Hall but were turned away by the club’s management and security. A minor argument ensued but was peacefully settled by the club’s bouncers. Thirty minutes later, approximately 15 - 20 uniformed New York City police officers from the 7th precinct arrived. There were no incidents, disturbances, nor any cause for alarm. They left quickly and joined their fellow officers in the exit area of the venue.
Upon joining their fellow officers, the officers who had just left the venue began to put on black leather gloves. Simultaneously, more uniformed officers arrived and exited their vehicles... Shara McHayle, an entertainment industry professional (who is also the wife of Pete Rock) added: "We all left the venue to be greeted outside by a sea of NYPD gloved up and very aggressive. As we began to move, we all witnessed the most brutal beating of a party patron. He was on the floor surrounded by 10 police officers with sticks out, beating him. In shock, we must have not moved quickly enough to the officers’ liking and they shouted 'Move the F*** Back' and then shoved me and my daughter down to the ground.
"Now we were surrounded by 3 cops and 1 pinning us down. My daughter shouted “Get off my mother” and then she was handcuffed and arrested." McHayle’s daughter, Jade Everett, was arrested and charged with assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct. While in police custody Ms. Everett and her friend Cynthia Rosa began their menstruation cycles yet were refused feminine hygiene products for more than a day, adding to the inhumane conditions the young women were made to endure.
Friends and family of the five people arrested are promising to protest outside today's court appearance, and their attorney, Kenneth Montgomery, tells DNAinfo, "If I had to guess, I would think that some, if not all, of them would file some civil action against the city, mostly as [a] principle that this thing cannot be accepted." One YouTube commenter summed it up thus: "I was there they was acting like they wanted to fuck up a very good vibe, FUCK POLICE,if this was a lady gaga or drake bs concert they wouldnt act like that, THEY TRYING TO SHUT DOWN true hip hop."
