Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Hero Takes a Fall


What do you make of this bizarre story? A Bronx cop who was celebrating an award for heroism broke into a woman's apartment later that night in his boxers, punching her 20 times before wandering into her kitchen and drinking from a carton of milk in her fridge, before leaving. His lawyer is now saying he was sleepwalking -- not blindly drunk. But even if this is true, should it be a mitigating factor?


The Daily News writes:
"Our report shows that it wasn't an alcoholic blackout. It was sleepwalking," said lawyer Michael Marinaccio after Officer Eugene Donnelly appeared in Bronx Supreme Court, where he faces misdemeanor assault and burglary charges for the bizarre June 11, 2014, incident. Hours before the alleged attack, Donnelly shook hands with Mayor de Blasio at a ceremony at One Police Plaza, where he was awarded the Police Combat Cross — the NYPD's second-highest honor — for his bravery in arresting a gunman who fired at him in May 2012. After a night of drinking to celebrate, Donnelly then barged into a 30-year-old woman's Woodlawn apartment he had confused with a friend's place on the same floor, prosecutors say. The woman told police that the previously model cop, wearing just boxer shorts, pounced on her in her bed and punched her 20 times. He then allegedly wandered into her kitchen and drank from a carton of milk in her fridge, before scampering off.  
Marinaccio said a doctor he's hired has diagnosed the cop with post-traumatic stress disorder, and various sleep disorders, dating to the May 2012 shooting. "On the best day of this guy's life, he does something so out of character," said the attorney. "Can we at least consider the possibility that something else is going on here?"




2 comments:

Peter Maria said...

I do think sleep disorders should be a mitigating factor. I have worked in sleep medicine before, and the doctor was called to testify for a few court cases such as sleep driving. And you would not believe the stuff that people can do while on Ambien and similar meds.

Anonymous said...

I would wonder what meds he was on. I know from personal experience (while this is just limited to facebook and twitter posting--thankfully never punching someone) that Ambien and any amount of alcohol can cause me to sleepwalk and even sleep converse without a hint of memory the next day.