PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Testimony in the trial of former Philadelphia SWAT officer Richard Nicoletti ended on Wednesday. Closing arguments and deliberations on whether he is guilty of assault and oppression began Thursday.
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Nicoletti faces several assault charges connected to pepper-spraying three protesters on I-676 during protests sparked by the murder of George Floyd three years ago. The defense contends Nicoletti was following his commander's instructions.
The question before the jury is this: Was Nicoletti’s use of force justified?
The third of three accusers on Wednesday testified that the June 1, 2020 protest was “peaceful and joyful” as the group got onto the Vine Street Expressway, but when tear gas was launched, the environment became chaotic.
Prosecutors showed video of other people climbing up an embankment. But she said she grabbed her goggles and sat down on the highway, expecting to be arrested. She says that’s when Nicoletti pepper-sprayed her and two others.
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Sounding upset, she testified that she was dizzy, hurt and confused as she tried to leave the area that day three years ago. She said it took days for the pepper spray to wash out of her hair, the chemicals burning her back each time she washed her hair. She described other injuries — a blown blood vessel in her eye, a few days of difficulty breathing — but she said it was “psychologically worse.” She said police came to her house a few days later, and that’s when she got a lawyer.
The accuser was also part of a class-action lawsuit against the city, which the city settled in March for $9.25 million, and the defense pointed out that she had received part of that sum.
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Chief Inspector Wilton Singletary, who oversaw the SWAT team, testified that he and other top police commanders — including Commissioner Danielle Outlaw — had met at the Pennsylvania Convention Center the day before the protest to discuss operational responses to the chaos throughout the city. He said the deputy was commanded to get Outlaw’s approval before using teargas and pepper spray.
Singletary added that he heard a deputy commissioner give the go-ahead to use those “less than lethal” agents after hearing from a Pennsylvania state trooper who was trapped in his car and asking for assistance.
When the trooper took the stand, he testified that protesters had surrounded his car that day. He said he jumped out and watched them spray paint his car — and he said he was worried because, just days before, protesters had been setting trooper cars on fire.
Following the trooper’s testimony, defense attorneys called to the stand a handful of character witnesses who were legally limited to say Nicoletti is known to “have a good reputation in the community.”
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After prosecutors rested, the defense asked Common Pleas Court Judge Roxanne Covington to dismiss the case and acquit their client — saying prosecutors hadn’t met the burden of proof, and that Nicoletti was doing what he was commanded and trained to do. She denied the motion and said the jury should decide.
The jury deliberated for four hours on Thursday and continued Friday morning. On Friday, two jurors were dismissed from the trial and the others were questioned.
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