Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Michael Mineo Awaits Justice for Officer Sodomizing Him

Michael Mineo - the star witness in the trial of a police officer accused of sodomizing him - has a checkered past but says he did nothing to deserve what happened to him.

"I just can't wait for this trial to start," Mineo told the Daily News. "I want justice.

"Do you know how much anger I have? He's going down. He violated me and he tried to sweep it under the rug."

In the trial, starting in Brooklyn Supreme Court this week and expected to last a month, Officer Richard Kern faces 25 years behind bars on charges of sodomizing Mineo with a collapsible police baton on a Prospect Park station subway platform on Oct. 15, 2008.

Officers Alex Cruz and Andrew Morales face four years on charges of covering up the assault.

The three Brooklyn cops, who have all denied the charges and say no assault took place, chased Mineo after spotting him with a joint. Kern allegedly assaulted Mineo as he struggled while being cuffed by a fourth officer.

Mineo's lawyer Stephen Jackson has filed a federal civil suit against the police and says his client is still suffering from posttraumatic stress.

Police officials at first scoffed at Mineo's claims, but prosecutors reinterviewed witnesses, viewed Mineo's medical records and took the case to the grand jury, which voted to indict after two police witnesses came forward.

Mineo - who has been busted for marijuana, stolen credit cards and a melee at a tattoo parlor where he was a body piercer - will be the main witness at the trial.

"The evidence will just speak for itself," said Mineo, who now works at Staples. "Talking about [my] arrests doesn't bother me, not one bit. That has nothing to do with me being sodomized.

"I could have been a murderer - that has nothing to do with it. They could say whatever they want about me. They're trying to bring dirt. I'm ready."

Still, how Mineo behaves on the stand may be as crucial as what he says. "I'm going to hold my composure, but I'm not going to be treated like the one who did something wrong," he said. "I'll look him [Kern] in the eye; he won't even be able to look me in the eye. I pray for Richard Kern. ... He crossed the line and he's going to do time," says Mineo.

"I hope that everything ends up well for him, but I don't forgive him. ... I pray for him. I pray for all my enemies."

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