A judge has ruled Rochester Police Officer Michael Sippel is guilty of abusing Christopher Pate.

Sippel pleaded not guilty to charges of misdemeanor assault. He's been suspended with pay for the past few months. 

The charges stem from an incident last May in which Sippel and his partner, Spenser McAvoy, stopped Pate, who they claim matched the description of a burglary suspect. 

Pate is a 37-year-old black man who claims Sippel and McAvoy ripped off his bookbag, tased him and punched him in the face after he was asked to show his ID. Pate suffered a fractured eye and broken jaw as a result. 

In November, a grand jury decided to drop charges against McAvoy, but felt the evidence against Sippel was enough to charge him.

Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren said in a statement that the verdict sends a clear message to the community:

"Today’s verdict sends a clear message that the City of Rochester and our Police Department does not, and will not, ever look the other way when our officers act inappropriately.  Any allegations of misconduct will be fully investigated and, if necessary, prosecuted." 
 

“What the message says is even though you are an officer of the law, you are not above the law. You are not to practice in this kind of egregious behavior," said Reverend Lewis Stewart of the United Christian Leadership Ministry.

However, he says more still needs to be done in combating what he calls long-standing implicit bias and racism in the Rochester Police Department.

“A lot of times, these cops because they have a badge and because they have a gun, and because they have state-backed authority, some of them feel they can treat you in any way they want," he added. 

Stewart believes the misdemeanor charge should’ve been a felony, and that the Police Accountability Board— on the ballot this November— would create more trust in the RPD and keep these kind of incidents from happening in the first place.

Interim Rochester Police Chief La’Ron Singletary says this verdict hasn’t changed his views on the possibility of a board.

“I think any agency that believes that no oversight is needed is an agency that has already failed," Singletary said. "I just ask the oversight that is planned or may soon be is fair for both sides, the public and the officers.”

Past Coverage: