Charges dropped for veteran involved in confrontation with police

<p>Charges were dropped Monday against a 73-year-old Air Force veteran from Baldwin who had been charged with assault, harassment and resisting arrest for an incident involving Nassau County police officers.</p>

News 12 Staff

Jan 29, 2018, 6:15 PM

Updated 2,440 days ago

Share:

Charges were dropped Monday against a veteran who was arrested following a confrontation with Nassau police that was caught on camera. Now, the man’s attorney is calling for the officers involved to face consequences.
Home surveillance video of the incident last February shows a man being grabbed by two police officers and apparently pushed down a flight of stairs.
The man seen in the video is 73-year-old Robert Besedin, an Air Force veteran from Baldwin. As News 12 reported, Besedin was arrested during the encounter for alleged assault and harassment.
On Monday, 11 months after the encounter, all charges against Besedin was dismissed. The assistant district attorney said in court, "This defendant's actions do not come up to the legal standard of harassment."
According to the initial court paperwork, when officers tried to arrest Besedin, he allegedly refused to put his hands behind his back, flailed his arms, kicked and pushed one of the officers down the stairs.
But that is never seen on the surveillance video. Now that the charges have been dismissed, Besedin's attorney Fred Brewington says the officers involved should face charges.
"I would now ask this district attorney's office to take this officers’ statement where they perjured themselves and said that Mr. Besedin attacked them -- look at the video and bring the charges that need to be brought," says Brewington.
Besedin says he's happy the charges were dropped, but adds it never should have happened in the first place. "They shouldn't have done it. They walked up to me, and next thing I know I'm flying," he says.
News 12 asked the district attorney's office if the officers are being investigated, and why it took 11 months to dismiss the charges against Besedin when the video tape was available.  A spokesman declined to comment.
The Nassau Police Department said back in June that there was an internal affairs investigation into the incident. A spokesman wouldn't say Monday if the officers had been disciplined or cleared.