An NYPD officer “hardly even” punched a man in an Upper West Side Apple store — and only because he believed the man was about to hit him — the officer’s lawyer argued on Tuesday, the first day of the criminal trial in the case.
“My client reasonably believed he was about to be hit,” Stuart London, a lawyer for NYPD Officer Salvatore Provenzano, said during his opening statement. “He hit him so as not to be hit.”
Provenzano is charged with one count of third-degree assault after prosecutors said he grabbed a disorderly customer by the wrist in 2021 and then punched him on the side of his face while attempting to escort him out of the store. Justice Maxwell Wiley will decide the verdict in Provenzano’s case because the officer opted for a trial without a jury. The NYPD said he’s currently on modified duty.
It’s rare for prosecutors to charge law enforcement officers, whom they work closely with to build criminal cases. But Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has prioritized holding police accountable for alleged misconduct. Since Bragg took office in 2022, some law enforcement officers have pushed back on his efforts, accusing him of being soft on crime and criticizing his office’s decisions not to prosecute certain minor crimes or ask judges to set bail in certain cases.
In her opening argument, Assistant District Attorney Jana Loeb said Provenzano’s action was not justified and that he broke the law. She said the customer was “frustrated and frustrating” but was not under arrest or acting violently when the officer struck him.
“Force is a legitimate and essential tool of policing, and officers have authority to use it,” Loeb told Wiley. “But only under certain circumstances, only in accordance with the law. … With that punch, Officer Provenzano committed a crime.”
Another officer at the scene that day, Yelena Ast, testified that security guards at the Apple Store called police because a man was causing a disturbance and would not leave. When officers arrived, she said, the man was acting “upset,” “angry” and “irrational,” waving his hands and saying the guards had assaulted him. She said he repeatedly threatened to sue the guards and the officers.
Body camera footage shows the man, Kamal Cheikhaoui, who is dressed in jeans, an orange baseball cap and a face mask, arguing with six officers and telling them he wants to file a report.
“Being aggressive, it’s not a crime,” he said in the video. “I’m disputing with you peacefully.”
The video shows Provenzano grabbing Cheikhaoui’s wrist as the group of officers walks him toward the door. “Don’t touch me with your hands,” Cheikhaoui said.
When Cheikhaoui turns toward the door, Provenzano punches him in the side of the face, the footage shows. Cheikhaoui then falls to the ground, crying out in pain.
“Don’t swing at me,” Provenzano said. “Now you’re going to the hospital.”