A mistrial has been declared in the trial of a former Philadelphia police officer seen on video lowering the face covering of at least one protester before dousing a group with pepper spray as they knelt on a city interstate during a summer 2020 demonstration.
The judge declared the mistrial Monday after jurors reported again that they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict in the trial of ex-SWAT officer Richard Paul Nicoletti. Jurors had also reported an impasse Friday but were urged to keep trying to reach agreement. A juror was dismissed Friday afternoon and two alternates were unavailable for medical reasons. But prosecutors and defense attorneys both agreed to move on with an 11-member panel.
Prosecutors told reporters late Monday afternoon that they would seek a retrial. There was no immediate word on when such a trial might take place.
Nicoletti faced charges including simple assault and reckless endangerment for his actions on June 1, 2020, after demonstrators made their way onto Interstate 676 during the protests that followed the death of George Floyd. Video circulated widely on social media that showed Nicoletti in riot gear approach three protesters kneeling on the highway and pull down at least one protester’s mask or goggles before pepper-spraying them. He was fired several weeks later.
After the city and state police use of tear gas gained national attention, Mayor Jim Kenney and police commissioner Danielle Outlaw apologized, calling the use of force that day unjustifiable. In March, the city agreed to pay $9.25 million to hundreds of plaintiffs who sued over police use of force during several days of protests.
Assistant District Attorney Brian Collins told jurors during his opening statement that Nicoletti’s actions were unnecessary, harmful, and beyond the scope of his duties as a police officer, adding that his badge "was a responsibility, not a license," The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
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Nicoletti’s defense attorneys have argued that he broke no law and acted on the orders of his superiors on the police force. Attorney Fortunato Perri Jr. said Nicoletti had been ordered to clear the highway and was authorized to use pepper spray to do so — and "he did that, nothing more."
A state police officer testified Wednesday that SWAT officers, including Nicoletti, protected him from an angry crowd, WTXF-TV reported.
Several people who were sprayed or witnessed the events testified. One person who was sprayed in the eyes choked up as she recalled what happened. Another protester said that after she was pepper-sprayed she "lost all sense of herself, crying and screaming for help."
A municipal court judge in 2021 dismissed all charges against Nicoletti, saying prosecutors had failed to show that his actions were criminal. A Common Pleas court judge later reversed that decision and reinstated the charges.
