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Man who allegedly attacked Newton police officers held without bail, roommate disputes police account
Police say 34-year-old Juan Gonzalez punched two Newton police officers in the back of the head. His roommate says it was police who were violent towards Gonzalez.
Juan Gonzalez, the man accused of attacking two Newton police officers while they were trying to arrest him for domestic violence Saturday night, was held without bail during his arraignment Monday.
Outside Newton District Court, one of 34-year-old Gonzalez’s roommates disputed the account police have given of what happened that night and provided video of part of the struggle.
Newton Police Department’s account
Newton police claim they were responding to a domestic violence call on Watertown Street around 10 p.m. when Gonzalez resisted arrest and became “assaultive.” Gonzalez allegedly punched two police officers in the back of the head, knocking one temporarily unconscious, and tried to grab the officers’ guns.
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“One of the officers started to feel something at his duty belt and observed the defendant had his hand on the handle of his firearm, and the defendant yelled, ‘I am taking this gun,'” a prosecutor said during Gonzalez’s arraignment Monday.
Ultimately, police were able to arrest Gonzalez, and the two officers were taken to a hospital and later released.
Gonzalez’s roommate’s account
WCVB reported that it was Gonzalez’s girlfriend who called police Saturday night, and that she said Gonzalez punched her in the face. But on Monday, Gonzalez’s defense lawyer said Gonzalez’s girlfriend is now recanting her statement to police, claiming she was intoxicated when she contacted them and that her story was not true.
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Additionally, Gonzalez’s roommate who witnessed the arrest, Davio Pena, told reporters he did not see how the struggle began, but that he saw an officer repeatedly punch Gonzalez while other officers held him down, WHDH reported.
“They outnumber him, at first, four to one, and then by the end in the hallway you can see they are outnumbering him six or seven to one,” Pena said. “When they say that he is handcuffed and they are trying to walk him down the stairs and he is able to assault an officer and somehow try to reach for a gun as well, while being handcuffed, just seems far-fetched to me.”
To add credence to his story, Pena provided reporters with a cell phone video he took of the arrest. While the video does not show how the struggle between police and Gonzalez began, it does show Pena surrounded by officers who have his hands held behind his back.
Police say in court documents that one officer punched Gonzalez when Gonzalez reached for the officer’s gun, WHDH reported.
What’s next
More local news
Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller told WCVB that her office is reviewing Pena’s videos, but that, based on the information it currently has, it supports Newton police in making the arrest.
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In the courtroom Monday, prosecutors read out Gonzalez’s 12-page criminal record, which includes a conviction for domestic violence and several restraining orders, WHDH reported. Prosecutors also said Gonzalez is on probation for stalking.
“Juan’s been really working to become a better version of himself,” Gonzalez’s sister told reporters outside the courtroom Monday.
The Boston Globe reported that Gonzalez is facing six charges, including assault and battery on a family member, assault and battery on a police officer, and two counts of attempting to disarm police.
Gonzalez is being held without bail until a dangerousness hearing March 14.
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