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Thabo Sefolosha and Pero Antic testify in NYPD case
Atlanta Hawks wing Thabo Sefolosha and former teammate Pero Antic took the stand Wednesday as part of the former's attempt to clear his name of charges stemming from the April incident that led to his season-ending broken leg last June. The 31-year-old Sefolosha, a Swiss national set to enter his 10th NBA season, rejected a conditional dismissal of three charges (obstructing government administration, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest) in September and claims that his injuries were caused by an improper use of force by members of the New York Police Department.
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Both Sefolosha and Antic, who received a full dismissal of charges on that same September date, followed the defense's line of argument claiming that the defendant had been profiled as "a black man in a hoodie" by police. From Jake Pearson for the Associated Press:
The Atlanta Hawks' Thabo Sefolosha, whose right leg was fractured in the struggle, said he had been following police orders to clear the area after the stabbing of another NBA player outside a New York City nightclub but was singled out by a particularly confrontational and vulgar officer.
''I said: 'If you saw me in a different place, you wouldn't say that. You're a midget,''' the 6-foot-6-inch guard-forward said of the officer, JohnPaul Giacona, who is 5 feet 7 inches tall.
Shortly thereafter, cellphone video shows multiple officers, including at least one with a baton in hand, surrounding Sefolosha and taking him to the ground before placing him in handcuffs and hauling him away. [...]
Antic, a former Hawks power forward, testified Wednesday that he was sitting in an Uber car with the door open in the early hours of April 8 when he heard officers arguing with Sefolosha as he tried to give a beggar, Amos Canty, money.
Antic also was arrested after touching an officer's shoulder while asking why his friend was being placed under arrest, but the charges against him have since been dropped.
Canty testified that he never received the handout from Sefolosha and described the officers' takedown as ''rough.''
As our Dan Devine wrote earlier Wednesday, neither side disagrees that Sefolosha and Antic eventually cleared the crime scene following the stabbing of fellow NBA forward Chris Copeland in an earlier incident unrelated to the two Hawks at the same night club. (Police testimony also noted the "midget" insult.) But the NYPD, which had six officers take the stand in this trial, claims that Sefolosha provoked and lunged at officers further down the block and was treated accordingly. The defense's argument, echoed in Wednesday's testimony, states that Sefolosha was trying to help Canty and became a victim of an improper use of force.
Police attorneys will have an opportunity to cross-examine Sefolosha on Thursday. The Hawks wing has been cleared to play this season but remains committed to the trial as his teammates work through training camp and the preseason. Antic signed a two-year contract with the Turkish club Fenerbahce this summer.
Sefolosha's claims of racial profiling follow many similar incidents involving the NYPD, including the controversial choking death of Staten Island resident Eric Garner and the department's stop-and-frisk practices.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don't Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at efreeman_ysports@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
