“Do you think it’s possible that if a white cop sees an African-American man who is large, that something happens in his mind that is a little bit different than if he seems me in a suit?” defense attorney Alex Spiro asked potential jurors Monday. However, the 6-foot-6 forward Sefolosha called Officer Giacona “a midget”, according to an ESPN report.
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“I personally thought that was uncalled for”, the officer sniffed. Sefolosha plans to fight charges he blocked officers from setting up a crime scene following the stabbing of Indiana Pacers’ Chris Copeland outside a trendy Manhattan nightclub in April.
In this photo from Wednesday, April 8, 2015, Atlanta Hawks…
A stranger tried to intervene, and when Copeland snapped at him, the guy stabbed him.
Sefolosha disobeyed those orders, then charged at an officer whose back was turned before he was stopped by officers and eventually taken to the ground and arrested, court documents show.
The Atlanta Hawks’ Thabo Sefolosha, who suffered a season-ending leg fracture in the struggle, has pleaded not guilty to the charges, which also include misdemeanor obstructing government administration and disorderly conduct.
Spiro played video surveillance footage for jurors showing that there were patrons closer to the crime scene tape than Sefolosha and his friends were.
Spiro argued that Giacona targeted Sefolosha because he was black. “I think he saw a black man in a hoodie”. “Defendant (Sefolosha) displayed a sense of entitlement and disdain”.
But prosecutors insisted that Sefolosha thought he was above the law. Opening statements start Tuesday. “He’s a professional athlete, a member of the National Basketball Association, and he’s going to do what he wants to do”. The Swiss citizen declined a plea deal from prosecutors.
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If convicted, he could face up to a year in jail.
