ITHACA, N.Y. — Judge John Rowley has dismissed all charges against Rose DeGroat, who was facing two counts of felony second-degree attempted assault and two misdemeanors in connection with an altercation that took place on the Ithaca Commons in April.
The case has garnered significant public attention and outcry, with continuous protests and rallies. Members of the community have packed every court appearance for DeGroat, no matter how small, and for Cadji Ferguson, whose charges were also recently dismissed.
• Related: Cadji Ferguson found not guilty of disorderly conduct in Commons case
In response to an omnibus motion filed by attorneys Edward Kopko and Jerome Mayersak, Judge John Rowley dismissed DeGroat’s indictment Friday morning.
On Friday, Kopko said his reaction is “bittersweet,” as he said he believes charges should not have been brought in the first place. He credited the public’s strong response over the past five months to helping get the charges dropped.
“Frankly, the community outrage about this led to this good result,” Kopko said. “This is the type of community that we want to live in.”
The Ithaca Police Department initially charged DeGroat with two counts of second-degree attempted assault and obstructing governmental administration. As a result of the incident, as noted in the order, one officer reported receiving several scratches on his face but did not require medical attention. The other reported having a headache.
Here is an excerpt describing the events, as outlined in Rowley’s order, that led up to the arrests of DeGroat and Ferguson:
In the early morning hours of April 6, 2019, two men, Cadji Ferguson and Joseph Ming, began arguing and scuffling with each other on the Ithaca Commons. Although other people were present and may have been involved, it is impossible to tell from the videos what role they may have played. The reason for the dispute is not known to the Court. At one point, Mr. Ming can be seen roughly pushing Mr. Ferguson away from himself. Mr. Ferguson then took off his jacket and charged Mr. Ming, knocking him to the ground. Mr. Ming immediately got up, apparently uninjured.
Four Ithaca Police officers were nearby and several witnessed Mr. Ferguson push Mr. Ming down. As a group, they rushed to apprehend Mr. Ferguson with Officer Herz in the lead. Officer Herz testified before the Grand Jury that he made the decision to use his taser on Mr. Ferguson before he reached him for two reasons. First, he said he made eye contact with Mr. Ferguson, a man he described as a “small, younger guy”, and concluded that he was about to run from the police. Second, “he had already used force against someone else – I had no idea the condition, the guy could have been unconscious for all I knew.” As he approached Mr. Ferguson, Officer Herz recalled ordering him to “Get down on the ground. Get down on the ground.” Per Officer Herz, Mr. Ferguson did not comply but tried to get away by going behind other people in the crowd. As another officer grabbed Mr. Ferguson, Officer Herz fell to the ground, having unknowingly been tripped by a fellow officer. He testified that when he looked up he saw other officers trying unsuccessfully to physically restrain Mr. Ferguson. Having a clear line of sight to Mr. Ferguson’s back, Officer Herz deployed his taser. “He went down just as picture perfect as we are trained and I immediately went towards him and tried to help take him into custody.”
The video evidence contradicts parts of Officer Herz’s account. While Mr. Ferguson did push Mr. Ming to the ground, Mr. Ming stood up within seconds in clear view of the police and well before any of the officers arrived at the scene. As the officers approached, Mr. Ming and Mr. Ferguson were essentially squaring off with each other like a couple of boxers. Neither appeared to have a weapon. As the police officers arrived, Mr. Ferguson turned away from them and took a couple of steps before he was forcefully grabbed and pushed toward the ground by the police. There was no time for Mr. Ferguson to hear, understand, or respond to the command that he get on the ground. As two officers sought to physically restrain him, Mr. Ferguson suddenly dropped straight to the ground, paralyzed by the taser. Mr. Ferguson was unarmed and was not fighting with the officers when he was tasered. He is clearly visible in a video with one arm free while an officer twisted him around by his other arm.
Ms. DeGroat is visible in the videos apparently attempting to calm Mr. Ferguson when the police descended on him. She was moving toward Mr. Ferguson as he was pushed by the police when he suddenly collapsed. An officer immediately got on top of Mr. Ferguson to handcuff him. As Ms. DeGroat threw herself into the melee in defense of Mr. Ferguson, three officers went after her and forcibly took her to the pavement face first. Ms. DeGroat is seen struggling with the officers as they subdued and handcuffed her.
DeGroat’s case has taken a few turns in the past several months. In May, District Attorney Matthew Van Houten agreed to reduce DeGroat’s charges after reviewing the video. However, the felony charges resurfaced in June after the case was brought to a grand jury.
In the order, Rowley said “in the Court’s view,” DeGroat “reacted instinctively to protect Mr. Ferguson in this fast moving and bewildering situation. If not for the regrettable actions of the police, she likely would not have intervened. When officers sought to restrain her, she forcefully struggled against them. Ultimately three officers were involved in forcing her to the ground face down.”
He said further that the court concluded the police officers overreacted to the initial situation and “made no effort to defuse the situation.”
The order notes that the district attorney’s office had consented to dismissing the felony-level charges, but opposed dismissing the misdemeanors. The order published Friday dismisses all charges.
DeGroat’s trial was previously planned for November. Over the course of five months, there have been several rallies and protests putting pressure on District Attorney Matthew Van Houten to drop the charges. On Friday, the pressure continued as more than 100 people gathered outside the Tompkins County Courthouse. In addition to the charges being dropped, protesters have called for the City of Ithaca to hold police accountable. The demonstration last week moved to Tioga Street, where protesters laid in the street and others drew chalk outlines around them.
• Related: Protesters occupy entrance to Tompkins Courthouse, demand charges against Rose DeGroat dropped
In previous statements to The Ithaca Voice, Ithaca Police Chief Dennis Nayor has said officers that night acted in accordance with the law, but added that he is nevertheless working to strengthen the department’s connection with the community. Nayor did not respond immediately to a request for comment Friday following Rowley’s order.
Rowley said Friday he had no further comment outside the order.
Van Houten did not respond to a request for comment Friday but said there would be a news conference at a later date. This story will be updated if Nayor or Van Houten respond with comments.
Read the decision and order below. You can read the original omnibus motion filed in August 2019 here.
Read the Decision and Order, Sept. 27, 2019
DeGroat Rose Interest of Ju… by Kelsey O’Connor on Scribd
Related Coverage:
- Woman in Commons case pleads not guilty after felony indictment
- Cadji Ferguson found not guilty of disorderly conduct in Commons case
- Legal cases continue for two charged in April Ithaca Commons incident
- Black Lives Matter Ithaca condemns police brutality and racism at local rally
- City releases police body camera footage of Ithaca Commons incident
- Charges reduced for woman charged in Commons case
- Prosecution of woman charged in Commons incident ‘totally unwarranted,’ attorney argues
- Three charged in ‘chaotic’ Ithaca Commons scuffle with police officers
Featured image: Demonstration in front of Tompkins County Courthouse on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. (Jacob Mroczek/The Ithaca Voice)