The battery trial for a former Hollywood police officer who is accused of hitting a handcuffed suspect is resuming Wednesday.
The trial was supposed to only last a few days, but is now into its third week.
From attorneys getting sick to motions to remove the media, the trial for former Hollywood police officer Matthew Barbieri has dragged on much longer than expected.
On Tuesday, Local 10′s attorney argued against a motion by prosecutors for the media and public to be removed from the courtroom.
“The press is a surrogate for the public,” said attorney Karen Kammer. “All proceedings in Florida courts are presumptively open and that has been the case for decades.”
The motion was then dropped.
In a twist to the case, the state was unable to get in touch with the victim on Tuesday for him to face cross-examination.
The video at the center of Barbieri’s misdemeanor battery trial shows an encounter that happened in August 2019, when Barbieri and other Hollywood police officers responded to a domestic disturbance and found Raymond Schachner naked in his bathroom with drugs, so they handcuffed him and brought him to a hallway.
In surveillance from inside the home, Schachner can be seen yelling at Barbieri as he goes back into the bathroom to collect evidence. Then the video shows Barbieri drag Schachner back into frame before smacking him twice with an open palm.
“Wait a minute! Nobody gave you permission to search the house! You don’t have a warrant or nothing! No permission,” Schachter is heard saying in the video before Barbieri struck him.
Barbieri is expected to take the stand in his own defense sometime during the trial.
Continue reading...
The trial was supposed to only last a few days, but is now into its third week.
From attorneys getting sick to motions to remove the media, the trial for former Hollywood police officer Matthew Barbieri has dragged on much longer than expected.
On Tuesday, Local 10′s attorney argued against a motion by prosecutors for the media and public to be removed from the courtroom.
“The press is a surrogate for the public,” said attorney Karen Kammer. “All proceedings in Florida courts are presumptively open and that has been the case for decades.”
The motion was then dropped.
In a twist to the case, the state was unable to get in touch with the victim on Tuesday for him to face cross-examination.
The video at the center of Barbieri’s misdemeanor battery trial shows an encounter that happened in August 2019, when Barbieri and other Hollywood police officers responded to a domestic disturbance and found Raymond Schachner naked in his bathroom with drugs, so they handcuffed him and brought him to a hallway.
In surveillance from inside the home, Schachner can be seen yelling at Barbieri as he goes back into the bathroom to collect evidence. Then the video shows Barbieri drag Schachner back into frame before smacking him twice with an open palm.
“Wait a minute! Nobody gave you permission to search the house! You don’t have a warrant or nothing! No permission,” Schachter is heard saying in the video before Barbieri struck him.
Barbieri is expected to take the stand in his own defense sometime during the trial.
Continue reading...
