Hundreds of suburban New York police officers chanted, cheered and rallied loudly inside a Long Island courthouse on Tuesday for a fellow officer indicted on assault charges for punching and kicking a man during a traffic stop captured on video.
Nassau County Officer Vincent LoGiudice, 34, was released without bail after pleading not guilty at his arraignment in Nassau County Court, the Associated Press reports.
He is charged in a grand jury indictment with two counts of second-degree assault and one count of third-degree assault. LoGiudice surrendered earlier at police headquarters and was suspended without pay.
LoGiudice is accused of beating a suspect during an arrest following an April traffic stop in Westbury. The encounter was captured on video from a nearby business and obtained by attorneys for the suspect, Kyle Howell. They have filed notice they intend to sue the county police department over the alleged assault.