Photo: Buffalo Police Department
Two Buffalo police officers who shoved an elderly protester to the ground have been cleared of wrongdoing by an arbitrator. Martin Gugino confronted a line of police officers wearing riot gear during a racial injustice protest in Buffalo in June 2020.
As Gugino approached the officers, he was shoved away by Robert McCabe and Aaron Torgalski. Gugino fell backward and hit his head on the pavement. He suffered a fractured skull and spent about a month in the hospital.
McCabe and Torgalski were both arrested following the incident. Last year, a grand jury declined to indict the two officers, who were also suspended without pay.
Now, McCabe and Torgalski are set to rejoin the force after arbitrator Jeffrey Selchick ruled that their use of force was justified.
"Upon review, there is no evidence to sustain any claim that Respondents (police officers) had any other viable options other than to move Gugino out of the way of their forward movement," Selchick wrote.
"Gugino, after the force was applied to him, appears to have not been able to keep his balance for reasons that might well have had as much to do with the fact that he was holding objects in each hand or his advanced age," he continued.
The Police Benevolent Association praised Selchick's decision.
"Two good cops who initially got thrown under the bus are back to the profession they love, and they're doing it with a clean slate. No criminal charges, nothing administratively. They're ready to hit the streets and go back to work for the citizens of Buffalo," association attorney Thomas Burton said in a statement.