Police Officer Who Shot Man In Struggle On LI Won't Face Charges: AG

MANORVILLE, NY — A police officer who fatally shot a man in Manorville during a struggle last year will not face charges, state prosecutors said.

Jesse Bonsignore, 44, was shot by a police officer during a struggle May 20, 2021.

According to a report by the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James, "following a thorough investigation, which included interviews with responding officers, a civilian at the scene who called 911, as well as review of video, crime scene evidence, photographs, radio transmissions, and ballistics testing, OSI concluded that a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officer who shot Mr. Bonsignore was justified."

On the night in question, the report said, a resident called 911 to report that there was an unknown man sleeping in the back seat of a car parked outside their house.

The Suffolk County Police Department officer who responded saw Bonsignore sleeping in the back seat of the parked car and knocked on the window, the report said.

Then, according to the report, "Bonsignore awoke, began screaming, and threatening to kill the officer. The officer directed Mr. Bonsignore to remain in the car and called for backup over the radio, but Mr. Bonsignore got out of the car. Despite the officer’s attempts to assure Mr. Bonsignore that he was not in trouble, he continued to repeat to the officer that he was going to kill him."

The attorney general's report then said that the officer saw a folding knife on Bonsignore’s waistband, which was later recovered at the scene.

The officer then tried to handcuff Bonsignore to prevent him from using the knife, at which point Bonsignore resisted and pushed backward against the officer, causing both to fall to the ground, the attorney general's report said.

During the ensuing struggle, Bonsignore "repeatedly attempted to grab his knife before reaching for the officer’s gun holster," the report said. The officer tried to restrain Bonsignore’s arms while pulling his gun from its holster to prevent Bonsignore from taking control of the gun, the report said.

According to the officer, Bonsignore then grabbed the wrist of the hand in which the officer was holding the gun, and the officer, fearing for his life, shot Bonsignore, the report said.

The individual who had first seen Bonsignore in the car and called police provided statements and security footage from outside his home to investigators that were consistent with the account, the attorney general's office said.

"Under New York’s justification law, a person may use deadly physical force to defend against the imminent use of deadly physical force by another," the report said. "When the defense of justification is raised at trial, the prosecutor must disprove it beyond a reasonable doubt. In this case, Mr. Bonsignore repeatedly reached for his knife, attempted to take the officer’s firearm, and more than once threatened to kill the officer. Based on the law and the evidence, OSI determined that criminal charges could not be pursued against the officer," the report said.

However, the report continued, the police officer who shot Bonsignore was not equipped with a body-worn camera and his patrol car did not have a dashboard camera.

"As a result of a corroborating eyewitness account and security camera footage, the facts of this case are clear. However, OSI recommends SCPD equip all officers with BWCs without delay," the report said.

Suffolk police said they are not commending due to pending litigation.

In May, Carmela Bonsignore, Bonsignore's daughter, represented by Lori Marano of Garden City, filed a wrongful death suit against Suffolk County, Suffolk County Police, and the officer, seeking $85 million in damages and accusing those named with "excessive force, fabrication of evidence and intentional infliction of emotional distress," according to the Riverhead News-Review. That suit also maintains that Bonsignore was an Uber driver, according to the report.

Marano and Carmela Bonsignore did not immediately respond to requests from Patch for comment.

The incident happened on Bauer Avenue at 10:45 p.m., according to Suffolk County police. A Seventh Precinct officer was dispatched to a 911 call about a "suspicious person" lying on the back seat of a vehicle, police said. An officer located the vehicle and Bonsignore, and, while engaging him, a struggle ensued, police said.

The officer fired his gun, striking Bonsignore, police said.

Bonsignore was pronounced dead at the scene; a knife was recovered from him, police said.

The officer was transported to Peconic Bay Medical Center for treatment, police said.