New police body camera video shows officers hogtying a Florida International University student while he was in handcuffs, a practice his attorney is calling controversial.
On Feb. 25, 25-year-old Matteo Falcinelli refused to leave Dean’s Gold Gentleman's Club in North Miami Beach after a security guard escorted him out, an arrest report said.
Falcinelli, who is from Italy, then touched and pushed two North Miami Beach Police officers in the chest, demanding his money back, the report said. After several commands to stop, officers took him to the ground and arrested him.
Officers took Falcinelli to a holding cell, and while their body cameras were rolling, he was heard screaming and yelling.
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The City of North Miami Beach said in a statement that officers used a leg hobble restraint on Falcinelli after he repeatedly banged his head against the holding cell door. They said he was caught on bodycam "behaving aggressively" during his arrest, at the police station, and while being transported to jail.
"The decision to restrain him was for his safety. North Miami Beach Police acted in accordance with state standards and department policy," the statement said, in part.
The city said officers removed the leg hobble after 13 minutes and that Falcinelli was monitored the entire time. They also said officers attempted to get him medical attention for a cut on his face and when he banged his head on the bars in the police car.
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Falcinelli's attorney, Chad Piotrowski, said the officers' response appeared "disproportionate."
"(Falcinelli's) attempt to obtain the officer's identification resulted in a forceful takedown, causing facial injuries," Piotrowski said in a statement. "Subsequently, at the police station, Matteo was subjected to the controversial practice of hogtying, a restraint method with recognized risks, including potential breathing restriction and positional asphyxia. It's worth noting that many police agencies have abandoned hogtying due to these acknowledged risks."
In its statement, the city cited a 2020 report from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics that indicates that more than 83% of police departments in the United States utilize leg hobbles, including 89.9% of departments in cities with populations similar to that of North Miami Beach.
Falcinelli's mother Vlasta Studenicova believes there's a difference between what's written in the police report and what's on the body camera and doesn't think officers should have arrested her son.
“It was something that I cannot even describe what pain I was feeling in that moment,” Studenicova said. “We want justice and that this never will happen to any other person.”
Falcinelli was charged with two counts of battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest, and trespassing. He entered into a deferred prosecution agreement on the two counts of battery on a law enforcement officer and one count of resisting arrest. The trespassing charge was dropped.
NBC6 also reached out to North Miami Beach Police for a statement.
