Attorneys for two Ocean Beach police officers accused of assaulting a Manhattan man told a jury Friday the man?s injuries were caused by his own drunken rage.
Sam Gilberd was cross-examined by the defense attorneys after presenting his own case in court Thursday. He told a jury that two Fire Island police officers pummeled him and that he blacked out after being kicked in the stomach in August 2005.
The attorney for Officer Arnold Hardman and Acting Ocean Beach Police Chief George Hesse characterized Gilberd as an angry drunk who cursed at and fought with officers. Under cross examination, Gilberd admitted he was drunk after having two glasses of wine, a couple of vodka and Red Bull cocktails and least two beers and tequila shots.
When asked to identify Hesse and Hardman as two of the officers at the police station that night , he was unable to do so. Defense attorneys also said Gilberd's punctured bladder and bruises happened when he fell on some scooters outside the station.
There were no comments from prosecutors or defense attorneys. Cross-examination will resume on Monday.