Complaint #200611747,
August 28, 2006

Officer: Zerafa, Vincent
Complainant: Black Male, 35
Allegation: Force: Physical force
CCRB Conclusion: Exonerated
Officer: Zerafa, Vincent
Complainant: Black Male, 35
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Refusal to obtain medical treatment
CCRB Conclusion: Unfounded
Officer: Zerafa, Vincent
Complainant: Black Male, 35
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Strip-searched
CCRB Conclusion: Exonerated
Officer: Pedraza, Jaime
Complainant: Black Male, 35
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Refusal to obtain medical treatment
CCRB Conclusion: Unfounded
Officer: Pedraza, Jaime
Complainant: Black Male, 35
Allegation: Force: Physical force
CCRB Conclusion: Exonerated
Officer: Zerafa, Vincent
Complainant: Black Male, 35
Allegation: Force: Nightstick as club (incl asp & baton)
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer: Zerafa, Vincent
Complainant: Black Male, 35
Allegation: Force: Chokehold
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer Complainant Allegation CCRB Conclusion
Zerafa, Vincent Black Male, 35 Force: Physical force Exonerated
Zerafa, Vincent Black Male, 35 Abuse of Authority: Refusal to obtain medical treatment Unfounded
Zerafa, Vincent Black Male, 35 Abuse of Authority: Strip-searched Exonerated
Pedraza, Jaime Black Male, 35 Abuse of Authority: Refusal to obtain medical treatment Unfounded
Pedraza, Jaime Black Male, 35 Force: Physical force Exonerated
Zerafa, Vincent Black Male, 35 Force: Nightstick as club (incl asp & baton) Unsubstantiated
Zerafa, Vincent Black Male, 35 Force: Chokehold Unsubstantiated

Conclusion Meanings:

'Exonerated': or 'Within NYPD Guidelines' - The conduct occurred but did not violate the NYPD's own rules, which often give officers significant discretion.
'Unfounded': Evidence suggests that the event or alleged conduct did not occur.
'Unsubstantiated': or 'Unable to Determine' - The alleged conduct was investigated but could not determine both that the conduct occurred and that it broke the rules.

Further details on conclusions.


Summary

The complaint concerns the following events: on August 28, 2006, at about 4:25 PM, [redacted] was standing on the corner of Grand Avenue and West 183rd Street in the Bronx, speaking with his friends, [redacted] and [redacted] Officer Vincent Zerafa, who was identified by [redacted] and Officer Jaime Pedraza, who was identified during the investigation, drove up to the group of men and arrested [redacted] He was driven to the 46th Precinct stationhouse where he was strip searched in a room near the holding cells by Officer Zerafa and Officer Pedraza (allegation A). During the course of the strip search, the officers recovered twenty small bags of marijuana from [redacted] and accused him of swallowing drugs. Officer Zerafa then pushed [redacted] against the wall of the room and stuck a nightstick in [redacted] s mouth (allegations B and C), causing him to bleed, and Officer Pedraza pushed against [redacted] and choked his neck (allegations D and E). Following the strip search, [redacted] requested medical attention from both Officer Zerafa and Officer Pedraza, and neither of them assisted him in obtaining medical treatment (allegations F and G). The strip search was not documented by Officer Zerafa in the command log, his memo book, or the arrest reports (allegation H). Read report for details.


Details

Incident: August 28, 2006
Received: September 5, 2006
Closed: May 31, 2007

Reason for contact: PD suspected C/V of violation/crime - street
Location: Police building
In NYPD 46th Precinct Bronx
Outcome: Arrest - other violation/crime

Witness Officers: Paul Mcmahon