1 THE COURT: 1 2 3 4 5 Ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much for your participation in this very difficult case. Your involvement, obviously we couldn't bring this to a close without you. So from 6 everyone involved, my deepest gratitude. 7 I would like to talk to you before you 8 leave, but your service is concluded and you don't 9 have to stay. 10 But give me a minute, when you get back 11 in the room, and I'm actually going to have you 12 stay for a moment while I deliver my remarks. I wish on this day that this courtroom 13 14 15 were packed with people. Nobody's listening. It's not. Nobody's here. And I'm not trying to insight 16 anyone in the community nor am I trying to insight 17 the Allentown Police Department but I have some 18 things to say. I will try to be brief and tempered in 19 20 my remarks. 21 my time from all areas of this courtroom. 22 with some of the finest men and woman that law 23 enforcement had to offer. 24 25 I am not an Ivory Tower judge. I did I worked I spent a decade out at night with police in the D.A.'s office on raids, on search DOLORES YOUNG, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER - RPR/RMR/CRR 2 1 warrants, on investigations, conducting interviews 2 at murder scenes. 4 I tried to provide to my community. 3 I thought I had seen it all. I was very proud of my years of service. I do protect 5 and serve. 7 and proudly display to this community how you talk 8 to people. 9 Police officers there that night. 6 10 But then you come in here with this case There were at least nine Allentown That is likely 90 percent of the 11 evening's platoon. 12 department. That is a lot for a 200 man You came into that scene like angry, 13 14 hostile bullies from your first contact with those 15 citizens, and especially officer Battani. For not the first time in recent history 16 17 I became ashamed. I was embarrassed. I was 18 ashamed of the officers and their conduct and their 19 words and actions and I was ashamed of the office I 20 spent 17 years in that they would bring this 21 prosecution. Now there's going to be people, it's 22 23 already happened, who come and say, "oh, Judge 24 Dantos. 25 in what they did. Those law enforcement officers were right what was he doing coming out of DOLORES YOUNG, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER - RPR/RMR/CRR 3 What was he doing lipping off? 1 his house? 2 know "those people", as the officers said, are your 3 community. YOU They called the police because there was 4 5 a man with a gun in their neighborhood who was, by 6 the way, not because the commonwealth brought it 7 out, later found, a man with a gun. 8 do with these people. 9 Had nothing to Do you know how hard it is for members 10 of that community to call the police? what 11 happened to protect and serve? 12 the carfs? 13 they had the courage to call you and ask you for 14 help. Isn't that still on You come into that community because 15 And by officer Lebron's own testimony, 16 to everybody who wants to back the police in this 17 case, his own testi many "no crime was committed 18 when he shoved the defendant down on the ground". 19 That is a fact. 20 That is this case. I have seen murder cases, shootings, 21 robberies, burglaries, pled to all manner of 22 offers. 23 instead, put on display police officers calling 24 people pussies, bitches, threatening to shoot a 25 dog, forming your disgusting blue line of four In this case nothing? You chose to, DOLORES YOUNG, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER - RPR/RMR/CRR 4 1 officers who turned their backs and said they saw 2 nothing. 3 You perjuried yourselves. You escalated 4 a situation without cause. S stand at this jury, laughing at the defense 6 attorney, high-fiving in the hallway after 7 testimony as if there were something, anything, to 8 be proud of here. 9 cops smirking on the You, officer Lebron, shoved Mr. Perez 10 because you we re mad , p e r i o d . 11 on the stand and told that jury that you were just 12 t r y i n g to make some space . 13 happened. 14 And then you got up That i s not what And this prosecution, excuse me, ladies 15 and gentlemen, but is no different than coming in 16 here and saying to a jury, ladies and gentlemen, 17 "Who do you believe? 18 l y i n g eyes?" 19 Me, the good guys? or your It's all on video and yet they come in 20 here and tell you something that is not 21 substantiated by that video. 22 the community who has only seen the Morning call 23 video, I invite you to look at the evidence that 24 this jury saw from the body cams of these very 25 officers who proudly got up here and prosecuted so for everyone in DOLORES YOUNG, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER - RPR/RMR/CRR 5 1 this case against this man. 2 It's a vicious cycle. I've seen men and woman exhibit great 3 professionalism in encountering situations where 4 they were spit on by the community, hit on by 5 members of the community. 6 Perhaps with police community tension so 7 high now if you showed even a small human level of 8 respect to this community we wouldn't even be here. 9 Nine officers, most of the night shift, 10 pulling cars from other areas of the city because 11 you lost it. 12 over nothing. 13 in a manner you didn't like? 14 them. That's what happened. Because someone was talking to you No crime. Choices were made. 15 You lost it. You serve I warned the 16 commonwealth and yet you displayed this conduct for 17 the world to see. 18 to be a healer. 19 community between law enforcement and the citizens. 20 But the blame for this lays with you and it is for 21 you to fix. 22 I It's shameful. I'd really like I would really like to unit this am grateful for this jury. I am 23 grateful for the opportunity of calling this out 24 for what it 1s. 25 You're excused. Mr. Perez, please stand. My common DOLORES YOUNG, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER - RPR/RMR/CRR 6 1 response to people who resist arrest is, "when the 2 police show up and they tell you to leave, leave. 3 when the police show up and they tell you to stop 4 talking, stop talking." 5 However, the law allows for what you did 6 that night. 7 unlawfully excessive use of force just as 8 justification allows you to then defend yourself. 9 You are released. 10 11 It was, in my humble opinion, an Please wait for me in the jury room. are adjourned. 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 DOLORES YOUNG, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER - RPR/RMR/CRR We