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Rikers Visitor Speaks Out About Beating
By
Ben Yakas
Published Nov 14, 2010
Modified Nov 14, 2010
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Nov 14, 2010
Modified Nov 14, 2010
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On Veterans Day, it was reported that several witnesses, including a Daily News reporter, watched as a Rikers Island Corrections Officer got into a verbal argument with a visitor, then beat and arrested him. Now, that visitor has spoken out about the incident, and he plans to sue the shit out of the institution. "I've never taken a beating like that in my life...I'm angry, very upset. I never did anything to provoke them. They're supposed to be the Boldest. Is that bold? To give you a royal ass whipping?"
Barry Crawford, 49, of Far Rockaway, told the News that he was at Rikers to visit a cousin and deposit money in the account of another relative. He was complaining about filling out a form when the confrontation with the unidentified officer occurred, and escalated into a fight, one which he claims (and witnesses corroborate) the guard started. "He just hauled up and punched me, on the right side of my face. I buckled a little, and as I was going down, he punched me to the ground and just kept punching me." Two more guards joined in, he was handcuffed, and brought to another office...for another beatdown.
"That's when they really worked me over good. The main guy was punching me in the face. They were doing suplex moves, like in wrestling, on my knees and my back," Crawford claims. He says that a captain joined the other officers in the beating: "They kicked me in the head, mouth, face and body. The original guy kept saying, 'I told you to shut up!...We're the boss here! We run the show!'" He was arrested initially and kept in lockup till late Friday, but the Bronx district attorney's office has since deferred prosecution pending further investigation.
Crawford held onto his bloodied clothes, in order to give them to his lawyer for evidence. He said he went directly from lockup to a hospital emergency room for treatment. "The doctor said, 'Man, what happened to you?'" Crawford recalled.
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assault
barry crawford
beatdown
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lawsuit
Rikers Island
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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