ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Rochester Police Chief Michael Ciminelli, responding Thursday to questions about a video which shows five of his police officers scuffling with and punching a homeless man Tuesday on West Main Street, said it's important to consider the circumstances.
"I know these videos are difficult to look at at times and it's important that we keep them in context," Ciminelli said, who also wanted to emphasize that the video was 15-seconds-long.
Ciminelli also released further details of the incident, which began when the 39-year-old mentally ill man refused to leave the Open Door Mission. He went out into the street and, police say, began punching and kicking pinning one officer against a car, and grabbing a pair of handcuffs from another officer.
Rochester Sgt. Andrew McPherson, the department's defensive tactics coordinator, reviews each "use of force report" in the department to see if it's appropriate.
"He started swinging it around at the officers and becoming assaultive," McPherson said of the handcuffs.
"It appears from what I read and what I reviewed on the video, again it's still in the infant stages and we still have more to do, but it appears that the officers were reasonable and appropriate. It appears they followed our training," McPherson said.
"This is not going to stop until you make an example out of some of these rogue officers," said Rev. Lewis Stewart, a frequent police critic. He says the video shows what he calls "a consistent pattern of negative interactions." He wonders why a negotiator wasn't called in to help police deal with the mentally-disturbed man.
"That's what we're talking about, instead of resorting to this type of violence, because when you do that, it exacerbates and widens the gulf of mistrust in the community between the people and the police," Stewart said.
According to police records, the entire incident lasted less than two minutes. The man involved was not charged, and police say he was not hurt. He was taken to the hospital for psychological reasons. Ciminelli said they believe the man may have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
As Rochester police make the move to body cameras, Ciminelli says that will add another element of video evidence, available to law enforcement and the community, to paint a clearer picture of what actually happens during confrontations like this one.
"I think what's important is, that we're open about it. That we'll explain our process and when we're comfortable, we don't want to go out and speculate," Ciminelli said.