Why you always hating on cops and our men and women in uniform robotjustine? I'll guess you were either turned down by the police or army and now you have a bee in your bonnet. Or perhaps you're some scrawny college student with a Che Guava poster on his wall and a chip on his shoulder.
I say more power to the police. I won't be happy until they're kicking down doors left, right and center, ransacking houses and looking for the bad guys.

Friendly fire? If a group of undercover cops beat the crap out of another group of undercover cops, that would be friendly fire. Also, it would be hilarious.

Sounds like an unfortunate case of friendly fire. as far as the cops kicking thugs asses , more power too em.

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That would only happen if the judge over-ruled the plaintiff's objection for relevance, which is pretty unlikely, given that the subsequent acts and accolades of a police officer are entirely irrelevant to those officers' alleged conduct in this case.

They were named officer of the recent month. Not the month of that particular incident. I don't see any prob with that.

Of course... now during the civil suit the lawyers for the city and the officer can say "of course he identified himself as a cop, look -- he was even awarded Officer of the Month, what Officer of the Month would forget to do that?".

Despite possible lawsuit, cops named Officers of Month

Monday, June 09, 2008

By MICHAELANGELO CONTE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Two Jersey City cops who a City resident claims beat him senseless when he reported a possible burglary were recently named Officers of the Month in their district.

In the April 2008 edition of the Jersey City Police Department's internal newsletter "Jersey City Watch," officers Victor Vargas and Kevin Hill were commended for coming to the aid of a man being assaulted during a robbery in March, leading to five arrests. It was the second month in a row Hill received the accolade.

Seven months earlier, Vargas and Hill made an arrest that might land them in court responding to a lawsuit.

Matthias Bolton, 34, of Palisade Avenue, said he called police last Aug. 20 when he heard a noise on his roof and saw two men trying to break into his building, according to police reports.

In an apparent case of mistaken identity - on everyone's part - Bolton mistook plainclothes officers Vargas and Hill for robbers and they, apparently, thought he was a suspected burglar.

Before he was arrested, Bolton says he was beaten, kicked and thrown down his front steps by the cops.

The cops never identified themselves, according to Bolton, who was charged with aggravated assault on a police officer and resisting arrest. Police officials insist Hill and Vargas, who declined to comment, identified themselves as cops.

Since then, Bolton, director of research for a labor union in New York City, has filed assault charges against Vargas and Hill. His attorney, John Burke, said he's nearly ready to file a civil lawsuit against the officers, police department and city.

According to Burke, Bolton suffered a black eye, an injured foot, and many abrasions to his arms, back and shoulders.

An investigation by the Hudson County Prosecutor's Office, which took over the case when Bolton filed the assault charges, is nearly complete, said Prosecutor Edward De Fazio, who declined to provide more details.


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