PROVIDENCE — A Providence police captain is charged with simple assault, after a video showed him slamming a handcuffed man’s face into the pavement in early July.
Captain Stephen Gencarella was arraigned at District Court on Thursday afternoon, where he pled not guilty and was released on his own recognizance.
His lawyer, Michael J. Colucci, said later that the video didn’t show the whole story, such as that the man had a knife sheathed inside his waistband.
The officers didn’t know at the time that the man had a weapon, Colucci said. Gencarella discovered a 1.5-inch blade after the man was in custody, according to a police report.
“The threat was not over until someone is searched and secured and placed in a cell,” Colucci told reporters outside the courthouse, as Gencarella listened quietly. “He had a weapon on him, which he was observed reaching for.”
The video shows Gencarella grabbing the man’s head and smashing his face while the man was handcuffed. Colucci said the man was “loosely handcuffed”; he did not answer questions about the captain’s use of force.
Gencarella, who has been out on injured leave since the incident, is also fighting the chief’s attempt to fire him.
Police Chief Colonel Hugh T. Clements Jr. has recommended that Gencarella either resign or be fired, writing in an Aug. 3 letter to the captain that the assault violated policies on use of force, violated the handcuffed man’s civil rights, and violated criminal law.
The incident on July 3 started over an unoccupied Jeep that was blocking traffic after the fireworks event at India Point Park. Lieutenant Matthew Jennette was calling for a tow truck when the Jeep’s driver showed up and became combative.
A 51-second cellphone video taken by a bystander and shared on social media showed Gencarella trying to help Jennette arrest the driver, Armando Rivas, 21, who struggled with them and fell down onto the road.
Gencarella and Jennette succeeded in handcuffing Rivas, who appeared to stop resisting after he was handcuffed and left face-down on the pavement. Then, the video shows Gencarella grabbing Rivas by his hair and smashing his face into the road. On July 6, the city said there was no police body-worn camera footage of the incident.
Gencarella is charged with violating the department policies of courtesy, truthfulness, obedience to laws and rules, standard of conduct, rules governing conduct, and demeanor.
Gencarella has requested a hearing under the Rhode Island Law Enforcement Officers Bill of Rights, which governs how officers are disciplined. The administrative hearing will start after the criminal case is adjudicated.
This article has been updated with information from the arraignment and comments from Gencarella’s lawyer.
Amanda Milkovits can be reached at amanda.milkovits@globe.com. Follow her @AmandaMilkovits.