Mayor Defends NJ Cop In Video Who Punched Woman In Head On Beach

WILDWOOD, NJ — The mayor of the New Jersey town where a woman was punched in the head by a cop, all caught on a video that went viral, is defending the officers who dealt with the incident this weekend.

In three interviews with media, Mayor Ernie Troiano said he was waiting for the investigation into the incident to conclude before rendering full judgment. But he did say the police "were doing their job" because the woman "refused to comply" with their orders.

(See video below – WARNING: graphic material; viewer discretion advised).

"People come down here to have a good time and we want them to have a good time, but we also want them to obey the laws," Troiano told nj.com. "That is not a hard thing to do. Just obey the laws."

Troiano also told nj.com that "if our officers are wrong, they're wrong and they'll be handled as such...But when push comes to shove, I think our police officers did what they had to do."

The video of the Wildwood incident was posted this weekend on Facebook by Emily Weinman of Philadelphia, who said she went to the beach with her daughter, her father and a friend this Memorial Day weekend when the incident occurred. She has since taken the post down, although it initially was posted by an onlooker on Twitter (see below).

Weinman, 20, of Philadelphia was charged with aggravated assault on a police officer, aggravated assault by spitting bodily fluids at a police officer, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, obstruction and being a minor in possession of alcohol.

Wildwood police said it is investigating the matter and the two officers, who were not identified, have been reassigned to administrative duty pending the outcome of the probe.

In a statement, Chief Robert Regalbuto said that while he finds this video to be "alarming," he does not want to rush to any judgement until having the final results of the investigation.

The incident happened when two officers approached the woman and asked her how old she is, Weinman said in her Facebook post. A scuffle ultimately ensued, and in the video, somebody – a woman and possibly a police officer – can be heard saying "stop resisting."

A young child can also be heard crying as people stood on the beach and watched two officers handcuff the woman.

Wildwood Commissioner of Public Safety Tony Leonetti told NBC10 that Weinman assaulted one of the officers by kicking him in the groin and then running away, which was not shown in the video and possibly happened before she was punched. Wildwood Police also say Weinman spat at one of the officers.

Weinman, who acknowledged she is under 21 years old but said she didn't do anything wrong, said she was sore and had a headache after the incident.

Weinman has a number of defenders who have taken to social media or posted on media reports, taking Wildwood officials to task for their allegedly aggressive tactics.

"I mostly don't understand why she had to be cuffed. Hitting her in the head is cause for a lawsuit for battery. If I were her I would get a great lawyer, so that that cop can be relieved of his job and get some money for pain and suffering," one person wrote on Patch.

Troiano told The Press of Atlantic City that Wildwood is a "good town" that treats people well, "provided they act accordingly, that they act like adults and don't act foolishly."

He did acknowledge that police typically just write tickets for underage drinking. “We simply don’t have the jail space to arrest everyone that’s underage drinking. We would have to build a prison,” he told The Press. “But people need to understand that it is illegal and that kids can lose scholarships to college and their licenses over something like this.”

“I don’t understand why it seems to be that this is a God-given right that they can come here and drink underage,” he told The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Weinman said in her Facebook post that when the police officers initially approached, she agreed to take a Breathalyzer test and it came back negative.

"I told them I wasn’t drinking and the alcohol was clearly closed/sealed, which the cops seen," she said. "They still stayed, the one cop following me when I walked away to go make a phone call after they did what they had to do."

Weinman said she asked the officers if they didn't have something better to do "than to stop people for underage drinking on the beach, saying that there’s so much more serious stuff going on."

"The cop said, 'I was gonna let you go but now I’ll write you up.' And he asked my name."

The woman said she refused to give him her information because she was innocent. "I told him I have my 18-month-old daughter with me and there’s no need for all of it and that again," she said. "I’m not gonna give him my information knowing I didn’t do anything wrong."

Weinman said the officer said he was going to arrest her and started coming towards me to put handcuffs on me. I cautiously was backing up from him (facing him) and yelled for my daughter's father (he was playing in the ocean with our daughter at the time)."

"I tripped and fell and the cop tackled me to the ground and smashed my head into the sand," she said. "At that point, I blacked out and fought any way possible trying to get up and push him off me.

"That's when he head locked me by his arm around my neck, punched on me in my head and then he head locked me again, but this time choking me. I was gasping for air."

"Yes, I know I should’ve gave him my name. I was partly wrong in a way but I was scared."

Wildwood police have asked anyone who was at the scene of the arrest, particularly those who have supporting video that could assist in the probe, to contact Detective Lt. Kenneth Gallagher at 609-522-0222. The Cape May County Prosecutors Office, Professional Standards Unit will also be assisting in this investigation.

Here is the video:

YouTube video/photo