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Brooklyn resident Mario Stewart, age 44, a Sergeant with the Mount Vernon Police Department, has been indicted on federal charges after allegedly using excessive force against a handcuffed individual in a March 2019 incident, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced on Thursday, July 20.
According to federal officials, at the time of the incident, Stewart had been assigned to the department's Emergency Services Unit, which responds to individuals experiencing mental health crises.
On March 26, 2019, Stewart and six other Mount Vernon officers were sent to assist the victim in the city as they were experiencing a mental health crisis. Once at the scene, officers restrained the victim by handcuffing his hands behind his back in addition to putting his legs into a restraint bag to transport him to medical assistance.
When the officers became unable to pull the restraint bag over the victim's chest because he had been holding on to one of the bag's straps, Stewart told the victim to let go of the strap.
After this, Stewart allegedly used a taser-like device on the victim seven times in the span of around two minutes, federal officials said, adding that the victim had remained laying on the ground with his hands handcuffed behind his back and his legs in the restraint bag the entire time.
Stewart's actions caused bodily harm to the victim, officials added.
Stewart, who surrendered to the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Thursday morning, was presented in White Plains federal court and charged with one count of deprivation of rights under color of law, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.
US Attorney Damian Williams said that Stewart's alleged conduct "not only betrayed his duty as an officer to protect those under his charge, but also violated the law."
"My office is committed to protecting the constitutional rights of all New Yorkers, including those experiencing mental health crises, and to holding law enforcement officers accountable when they abuse their authority," Williams added.
In a statement released Thursday evening, Mount Vernon city officials called Stewart's alleged conduct "abhorrent."
"The Patterson-Howard administration understands the overwhelming feelings of betrayal expressed throughout our community and agrees that lawlessness from law enforcement has no place in our city and falls significantly short of our shared values," read the city's statement, which Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard contributed to.
Officials also said they would cooperate with the Department of Justice's investigation into the incident.
"This incident underscores the urgent need for officers to intervene when the force used by their comrades is excessive," the statement read.
Officials added that the city's current administration has since created a " duty-to-intervene policy" that requires officers to intervene when they can prevent a colleague from using excessive force, no matter their rank.
Mount Vernon officials also defended the rest of the city's police department.
"Most of our officers are committed public servants working daily to make Mount Vernon safer," city officials said, continuing, "We will continue to work to ensure they get the resources and training they need to serve all the residents of this city with fairness and without bias."
Stewart's prosecution is now being handled by the US Attorney's Office's Civil Rights Unit in the Criminal Division.
This is a developing story. Check back to Daily Voice for updates.
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