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November 28, 2003
Shot Cop Testifies In $2.5M Civil Suit
Wants ‘Attacker’ to Pay
By Mark Daly
An injured Detective took the stand in a Queens courtroom Nov. 18 to describe
the world of hurt he entered after he was shot in the hip during a struggle with
an armed suspect in 1999.
The officer, David Gonzalez, testified as part of his $2.5 million civil lawsuit
against William Hodges, his accused assailant, who walked free last year when
a state judge ruled he hadn’t been given a speedy trial.
‘Constant Pain’
Mr. Gonzalez, 29, said he is in “constant pain” from the two dozen
bullet fragments that remain in his right leg and hip.
“It’s much worse when it’s damp out, or when it’s cold,”
the officer said in a subsequent interview. “The sorts activities I used
to do – skiing, running, hiking – I don’t enjoy them as much,
because they’re painful now.”
A rookie at the time of the shooting, Mr. Gonzalez later received a promotion
to Detective and a transfer to the Intelligence Division. The Patrolmen’s
Benevolent Association is continuing to provide him legal support in his civil
case.
“We need to send a message: If you shoot a New York City police officer,
we will go after you until we get justice,” said PBA President Patrick J.
Lynch.
Mr. Hodges failed to show up for last week’s hearing, and no attorney
attended on his behalf. His former criminal attorney has said his former client
is now working in construction.
The Supreme Court Justice who heard yesterday’s testimony, Patricia Satterfield,
ruled last month that Mr. Hodges could be held liable in the shooting of Mr. Gonzalez,
in part because the accused assailant hadn’t participated in earlier stages
of the case.
Last year a different Queens judge, Laura Blackburne, ordered Mr. Hodges released
after she concluded that the Queens District Attorney’s Office had taken
too long to prosecute.
A challenge of that ruling is still pending in a state appeals court, a spokeswoman
for Queens DA Richard A. Brown said last week.
Too Many Delays
State law gives prosecutors 182 days to begin a criminal trial. When she threw
out the charges against Mr. Hodges, Justice Blackburne said the Queens DA’s
Office had requested 208 days’ worth of adjournments over a three-year period.
Mr. Brown contends that procedural moves on both sides led to the repeated postponement
of the criminal trial. He charges that the judge counted the dates wrong when
she ruled that prosecutors had missed their deadline.
Mr. Brown believes Ms. Blackburne’s ruling showed “serious errors
in judgment,” the spokeswoman said.
Supporters of Mr. Gonzalez have accused Ms. Blackburne of bowing to outside
influence in her ruling. The Daily News reported last year that the judge and
Mr. Hodges’s mother, Sandra, both belong to the Jamaica branch of the NAACP.
The judge and Sandra Hodges have denied knowing each other.
Last week’s two-hour hearing was Mr. Gonzalez’s first chance to
tell his story in court since Mr. Hodges was arraigned on attempted murder charges
four years ago.
Grabbed Gun in Scuffle
Mr. Gonzalez said he was injured while on patrol on Nov. 12, 1999 when he stopped
Mr. Hodges in the vestibule of a Queens apartment building while responding to
a report of an armed intruder fitting the man’s description.
Mr. Hodges – described by prosecutors as a small-time crack dealer –
allegedly grabbed the uniformed officer’s gun from its holster and pulled
its trigger as the two men wrestled on the floor.
In his lawsuit, the officer is seeking $500,000 for his pain and suffering
to date, plus $500,000 a year for the nest 50 years for future suffering, said
his attorney, Greg Longworth.
During the hearing, Dr. Nader Paksima, an orthopedic surgeon from New York
University Hospital, testified that Mr. Gonzalez will face painful complications
if the bullet fragments in his hip and femur drift into his joints. The officer
is also at risk of lead poisoning if the tiny pieces deteriorate and enter his
bloodstream.
Removing the fragments is hazardous in itself, the doctor said, because it
would cause additional damage to the surrounding tissue.
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