A Bronx father is in the medical intensive care unit at Lincoln Hospital after a noise complaint for loud music escalated.
Ebony Morris says her family was hanging outside their apartment along Hunts Point Avenue near Gilbert Place on Aug. 23 when multiple NYPD squad cars pulled up outside, just before 11:30 p.m.
Police say they were responding to a 311 complaint for loud music when they attempted to take a speaker and issue a ticket for unreasonable noise when 35-year-old Shatiqua Hill began to interfere with officers.
Hill was placed under arrest, according to the NYPD, after multiple orders to stop interfering.
A video recording begins after Hill was arrested. Video shows at least four officers pin her father, identified as Sammy Santiago, to the ground while one officer punched him in his head. Seconds later, another officer is seen in the video hitting him in the face.
“He punched him, three times in his head really hard, that’s when Sam was laying down, I thought he was dead," said Morris, Santiago's sister.
Santiago, a 50-year-old, has been in the medical intensive care unit at Lincoln Hospital with a pontine hemorrhage.
"They had their knees on his back, his stomach, he's screaming. He's trying to tell them to stop, help, he's telling them to stop, please help," said Morris.
Santiago's attorney says Hill suffers from a mental health disorder and that Santiago attempted to calm her down while she was being handcuffed when he was put under arrest and punched several times. Police say Santiago was arrested because he interfered with officers.
"Police officers had Mr. Santiago's daughter in custody, at that point, he walked up and said he wanted to calm his daughter...He is shackled to his bed while the police officer that whacked him in the head and caused him to experience brain injuries walks free. That officer should be in jail," said Ezra Glaser, a senior attorney who is representing Santiago.
Santiago and his daughter are both facing multiple charges, including resisting arrest, harassment in the first degree and obstruction of governmental administration.
"The police was called over music, not because someone was hurt, not because someone was doing anything outside, because of music, what was the reason for them to be called for music and for him to be left in the ICU, that's what we want to know," said Morris, Santiago's sister.
His family has submitted a complaint to the Civilian Complaint Review Board.