Prosecutor Clears Brookdale Cops Accused Of Police Brutality, Says More Force Could Have Been Used

Brookdale Community College Police Officers accused by a student of police brutality have been cleared of wrongdoing, according to the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.

In a letter to Brookdale’s Dean of Human Resources, Patricia Sensi, the prosecutor’s office found, after an investigation, that the officers were in full compliance of ”use of force” guidelines and policies, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced today.

After receiving a formal complaint filed by the student, Jeffrey Michel, Gramiccioni said that the Professional Responsibility Unit of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s office, having reviewed video evidence and following the guidelines set forth by the Attorney General and Prosecutor’s offices for Use of Force, found the officers “did not commit criminial wrongdoing” while trying to place the student under arrest.

“It is clear from reviewing the video footage that the force that was used was necessary to overcome the physical resistance of Mr. Michel,” Gramiccioni said, in a statement to Brookdale’s Dean of Human Resources, Patricia Sensi.

In fact, Gramiccioni states that the video shows that the officers would benefit from additional training because they showed unwarranted “restraint” during Michel’s resistance, and that the officers could have been more aggressive, could have “had Mr. Michel cuffed sooner, and still have been in compliance” with the guidelines, ensuring the officers’ safety.

Jeffrey Michel, a nursing student at the college, was pepper sprayed while resisting arrest last month at the college’s Lincroft campus. In the video that was spread through social and news media outlets, Michel can be head repeatedly pleading to know why he is being arrested, and can be seen physically resisting officers’ attempts to cuff and restrain him.

According to the Prosecutor’s office, the case is now considered closed, and no charges will be filed against the officers involved.

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