A police union representing officers with the Rochester Police Department claimed Friday that the video of Daniel Prude's arrest that was released by the department was "not complete" and "not accurate."
Michael D. Mazzeo, the president of the Rochester Police Locust Club, did not get into specifics as to what was missing from the version of the video released by the Rochester Police Department on Wednesday, noting that an investigation was ongoing.
Mazzeo also said that the officers' use of a "spit hood" was within department protocols and consistent with their training, adding that officers had gone through mandated state training between 30 and 40 days prior to the incident.
He added that Prude had made references to have tested positive for coronavirus during the incident.
He also called for the New York Attorney General to conduct an "impartial" and "transparent" investigation.
Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren suspended seven officers Thursday after video was released that showed officers shoving Prude's head into the ground for about two minutes after finding him naked and bleeding in the street. Prude died a week later after he was taken off life support.
Prude's family said he was in the midst of a mental health crisis at the time of the incident.
Mazzeo also claimed that one of the suspended officers was not even involved in the Prude incident and called for the city's "law department" to be held accountable for what he described as mistakes in their investigation.
He said the Locust Club was not involved in the internal investigation into the incident until Wednesday and was not aware ahead of time that the seven officers would be suspended. Mazzeo added that the union knows "no more than anyone else" about the department's internal investigation.
