NYPD Police Officer at Center of Social Distancing Bust that Went Viral Has Already Cost NYC $200,000 in Lawsuits

One would think that if a person were caught doing the same thing numerous times, and punished for it, they would be deterred from doing it again—or dismissed at the very least. But, that doesn’t appear to be the case in the New York City Police Department. A police officer who was seen brutalizing a black man on video on the streets of New York has had many complaints about his behavior. And he has reportedly cost the city $200,000 in lawsuit payouts, according to The New York Post.

The now-suspended police officer, Francisco Garcia, was captured in a now-viral video slapping and punching a 33-year-old bystander who went to- to-toe with the cop. His past transgressions have cost the city more than $200,000 in payouts over the last six years, according to court records.

Earlier this week, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office said it was deferring the charges against the bystander, Donni Wright, in the incident which took place near the corner of East Ninth Street and Avenue D in Manhattan.

Based on reporting by the Post, here is a list of previous acts committed by Officer Garcia that has led to the lawsuits filed by the victims:

In 2018, the city doled out its largest settlement, for $120,000. The lawsuit was filed against Garcia and his partner, Gabor Kolman. The lawsuit alleges the pair racially profiled Hector Hernandez in January 2016, which led to a wrongful arrest and assault.

In another case in February 2014, Garcia threw Marcus Bussey to the floor inside a Washington Heights public housing complex and “began assaulting him with fists, shod feet and foreign objects, attacking his legs, knees, thighs, back, ribs and head,” the lawsuit alleges.

Bussey was visiting his girlfriend there at the time of the arrest, according to the suit, which was settled for $27,500 the next year.

A year after Garcia joined the force in October of 2013, the police officer allegedly ridiculed a woman for her sexual orientation at a fast-food joint, the suit says. When the woman, Natae Adams, tried to get his badge number, Garcia allegedly said, “Take a f–king picture of it, f–king d–e!” and later arrested her, according to the suit.