BLM protests: Philly SWAT officer charged with assault for pepper-spraying kneeling protesters

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — A Philadelphia SWAT officer accused of pepper-spraying protesters on an interstate during mass anti-racism demonstrations has been charged with misdemeanor assault, among other charges.

Officer Richard Paul Nicoletti has been charged with three counts each of simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and official oppression, as well as one count of possession of an instrument of crime, WCAU reported.

Nicoletti, 35, assaulted three protesters June 1 with pepper spray as they knelt on the highway, District Attorney Larry Krasner said when announcing the formal misdemeanor charges Wednesday.

A statement released by John McNesby, the president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 union, which represents law enforcement officers in the city, said they “will provide an appropriate defense for officer Nicoletti as this process moves forward.”

Nicoletti turned himself in to authorities Wednesday morning, WPVI reported.

According to the TV station, Nicoletti was among the SWAT officers deployed around 5 p.m. June 1 after a large group of protesters walked onto I-676 and stopped traffic. In video of the incident, Nicoletti was seen carrying a pepper spray can as he approached four kneeling protesters. Investigators say he then sprayed two of the protesters in the face and was seen on video pulling down the goggles of one of the protesters, before spraying her again in the face.

Investigators say the third protester hunched over to protect his face with his legs crossed and Nicoletti grabbed and threw him onto his back, spraying him with pepper spray while he was stunned, WPVI reported.

The fourth protester was not sprayed.

“The complaint alleges that Officer Nicoletti broke the laws he was sworn to uphold and that his actions interfered with Philadelphians’ and Americans’ peaceful exercise of their sacred constitutional rights of free speech and assembly,” Krasner said in a statement. “The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office will not make excuses for crimes committed by law enforcement that demean the democratic freedoms so many Americans have fought and died to preserve.”

Meanwhile, McNesby took aim at the district attorney in his statement.

“Krasner refuses to hold unlawful protesters accountable, those who set fire and looted our great city … His top priority is to push his anti-police agenda. This double-standard of justice is unacceptable to our brave police officers who work tirelessly to keep our city safe,” McNesby stated.

Cox Media Group