A Suffolk County man subdued by a
police stun gun Tuesday claims he was the victim of police brutality.
Jeu Gonzalez, 21, was arrested
outside a Copiague deli after police said he shouted obscenities at a female
officer, then appeared to lunge at her.
Gonzalez claims the officers were
the aggressors and showed stun gun marks on his legs and stomach. Cell phone
video shot by a friend of Gonzalez captured part of the confrontation, showing
four officers atop the college student, who screamed as the stun gun was
deployed on him.
"It was unnecessary
roughness," said Gonzalez outside Suffolk District Court in Central Islip
Wednesday. "I felt violated."
Suffolk County Police have
confirmed that an officer administered at least three stun gun shots to
Gonzalez, who was later charged with resisting arrest and harassment. Gonzalez
pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and was freed on $1,000 bail.
"This was abuse, abuse,
abuse because we are Hispanic," Gonzalez' mother Lorena said outside
court.
When the officers confronted him,
Gonzalez said the police directed foul language at him and he responded in
kind. But it was the officers, he claimed, who escalated the incident into a
physical confrontation.
"The male cop clothes-lined
me into the car, grabbed me and we scuffled and went to the ground. I tried to
comply with what he was telling me, but because of his force, I couldn't,"
said Gonzalez.
The incident remains under investigation,
said police. Gonzalez is due back in court next week.