Buffalo officers who pushed 75-year-old protester to ground cleared by arbitrator

BUFFALO, N.Y. — An arbitrator ruled Friday that two officers who engaged with a 75-year-old man during a June 2020 racial injustice protest in Buffalo were “absolutely legitimate” in their use of force.

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Arbitrator Jeffrey M. Selchick cleared officers Aaron Torgalski and Robert McCabe of any wrongdoing in the incident, in which protester Martin Gugino, 75, fell, hit his head on the pavement and suffered a fractured skull and brain injury, The Associated Press reported.

Gugino has since recovered from his injuries, WGRZ reported.

The video of the incident posted by WBFO went viral on social media with over 85 million views. Gugino was injured as he approached crowd control officers who were trying to remove the protesters in downtown Buffalo for an 8 p.m. curfew that was in effect. Gugino approaches Torgalski and McCabe and tries to engage them, at which point one of the officers push Gugino in the chest and he falls backward, striking his head on the pavement.

In his ruling, Selchick said the officers’ actions were justified because Gugino refused to comply with orders to leave the scene and was acting erratically, The Associated Press reported. “Upon review, there is no evidence to sustain any claim that Respondents (police officers) had any other viable options other than to move Gugino out of the way of their forward movement,” Selchick said.

Buffalo Police Benevolent Association President John Evans told WGRZ he was “ecstatic” about Selchick’s ruling. “Two good cops who initially got thrown under the bus are back to the profession they love, and they’re doing it with a clean slate,” Evans told WGRZ.

Torgalski and McCabe were suspended without pay and charged with assault, but a grand jury declined to indict the officers and the charges were dropped in February 2021. “I stand by the fact that charges should’ve been filed, and there was probable cause at that time to charge that offense, and I stand by that,” Erie County District Attorney John Flynn told WGRZ.

Melissa Wischerath, an attorney for Gugino, said that the arbitrator’s ruling will have no bearing on their lawsuit against the city of Buffalo, The Associated Press reported.

Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said in a statement he will reinstate the two officers to duty on Monday, according to The Associated Press.

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