Trial for Rockville Centre Police Officer Anthony Federico continues Friday

The trial for Rockville Centre Police Officer Anthony Federico continued Friday, as his defense attorney, William Petrillo, spent much of the day cross-examining witness Alyson Gallo, who took a video of the May 2016 incident under question.
The proceeding began Wednesday, after the 37-year-old officer was indicted last March on charges of assault against Kevin Kavanagh during a skirmish outside a South Park Avenue bar, as well as later falsifying police records. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Federico was responding to a fight outside the Beach House at about 2:40 a.m. on May 8, 2016 when prosecutors say he used excessive force, allegedly striking Kavanagh, 27, on the head with his Taser and opening a 6-centimeter laceration that required sutures and staples to close. Kavanagh’s brother, Brendan, 21, was also involved.
Petrillo said in his opening statement Wednesday that Kavanagh put his arm around the back of Federico’s neck and arm, and that Brendan swung his leg to kick Federico during the tussle, adding that the officer was surrounded by a crowd of drunks.
On Friday, Petrillo pointed out that Gallo had not mentioned these acts by the Kavanagh brothers in previous testimony to the grand jury in 2016.

Gallo, 26, recalled Federico responding to the scene after Kevin and Brendan had gotten into a fight with three other unknown men. The Kavanaghs were injured, and as she tried to tell Federico that the other men were getting away, she claimed that he told her to “get out of his f-cking face.”
But Friday, Petrillo emphasized that two police cars arrived at the scene, pointing to surveillance footage that appeared to show flashing lights from two police vehicles, with one car fleeing the scene to chase the other men.
Gallo said she did not recall Federico telling her that another officer was chasing them, and, under the impression they were not being pursued, that she was “not happy.”
Tension between Petrillo and Gallo was evident Friday, as the 26-year-old smiled after one of his questions. “I see you’re laughing,” Petrillo shot at her. “Is there something funny happening today?” He asked if she realized that Federico was on trial for assault and other charges, walking over to the defendant and slapping his hands on his shoulders.
“I wasn’t laughing,” Gallo quipped.
Assistant District Attorney Robert Cavallo, deputy chief of D.A. Madeline Singas’s Public Corruption Bureau who is prosecuting the case, objected to Petrillo’s next question, which asked Gallo to tell the court what a smirk is. Judge Christopher Quinn sustained the objection before the exchange could go any further.
Petrillo pointed out a number of discrepancies between Gallo’s testimony throughout the few hours she was on the stand and prior testimony to investigators and to a grand jury over the last year and a half, including details about how drunk the Kavanaghs were, how many times Federico hit the Kavanaghs, whether she was injured and her overall behavior that night.
“How far through school are you?” Petrillo at one point asked Gallo, who serves as an administrative coordinator for a law firm and had said Wednesday she plans to go to law school.
“I have my bachelor’s degree,” she said, shaking her head in annoyance.
Petrillo claimed that Gallo could have been reaching for her phone to take a video when he said Kavanagh punched Federico in the face, meaning Gallo was unaware of why Federico reacted the way, proceeding to arrest him.
The video Gallo had taken was played in court again Friday, and Petrillo paused it at one point to show both of Kavanagh’s hands on Federico, and a third “unknown hand” reaching near his back, just above his gun.
Gallo said she saw Federico strike Kavanagh in the head, after which blood began streaming down his face, but that it was not captured on the video.
Appearing to be on the verge of tears, Gallo gave a faint smile and sighed when Petrillo said, “I have no further questions.”
The trial is set to continue Monday at 9:30 a.m.


Day one in court

“The video alone will prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Officer Federico caused the injury,” Cavallo said in his opening statement on Wednesday. “…Instead of handling it in a way that was appropriate, he acted out of vengeance and anger.”
Cavallo also alleged that Federico falsely claimed in a crime report after the incident that Kavanagh’s injury was suffered during the fight before he had arrived to the scene, not due to the Taser.
Petrillo, described the brothers as “intoxicated, belligerent and criminal,” his loud declaration filling the courtroom at the Nassau County Courthouse in Mineola, before Judge Quinn. He added that Kavanagh’s blood alcohol content was more than double the legal limit and that there was cocaine in his system.
According to police reports, Kevin was charged with attempted assault on Federico and resisting arrest. Brendan was charged with resisting arrest, obstructing law enforcement and possession of fake identification.
“This is a great police officer who found himself in an extremely dangerous situation, and who reacted professionally and appropriately,” Petrillo said outside the courthouse. “Any and all force that he used during those early morning hours was reasonable, necessary and justified. He did not commit any crime on that day.”
Mary Kavanagh, mother of the brothers, took the witness stand, as did Gallo, who recorded the video that would later be shown before the trial’s first day concluded. Gallo recalled Federico responding to the scene after Kevin and Brendan had gotten into a fight with three other unknown men.
Federico walked over to the Kavanaghs, she testified, which is about the time she began filming with her cell phone. “I didn’t think that he was there to help us,” Gallo said. She recalled Federico using a Taser on both Kevin and Brendan, as well as punching and beating them repeatedly.
Then Federico put handcuffs on Kevin and turned him over. “It looked like something out of a horror film,” she said, beginning to cry. “Kevin had blood all over his face.”
Prosecutors submitted surveillance footage from nearby bars Dark Horse Tavern and Croxley’s Ale House, as well as Gallo’s video, as evidence. As the latter video was played in the courtroom — with Gallo’s voice heard repeatedly screaming “You f-cking pig!” at Federico — she shook her head, looking across every few seconds to the police officer, who simply stared at the television screen, his arms folded in front of him.
Both the prosecution and defense have said that Gallo’s video will help their case.
Rockville Centre Police Commissioner Charles Gennario, one of several members from the department who attended the trial, said he believes Federico was attacked and defended himself, calling it “a simple case.”
“I think the evidence backs up Officer Federico,” he said of the video during a trial recess, adding that it’s “terrible” that charges were dropped against the Kavanaghs. “…It’s a shame that Officer Federico has to go through this, and the village and my entire department. This has not been easy for a small department, but we will survive it and I’m confident there will be a positive outcome.”
Federico is still working for the department, but is on modified duty working a desk. He waived his right to a jury trial — Judge Quinn will decide the case — and faces up to seven years in prison.