Phila. judge acquits former police officers charged with assaulting graffitist

Philly.com

Three years after they were charged with assaulting and breaking the jaw of a graffiti artist after he tagged a Feltonville building, former Philadelphia police Officers Sheldon B. Fitzgerald and James Hill 3d walked out of court Friday free and intent on returning to the force.

The dramatic acquittals were announced not by the Common Pleas Court jury that had heard testimony since Wednesday, but by Judge James Murray Lynn.

Excoriating David Vernitsky, the alleged victim and chief witness, as a “double-digit liar,” Lynn granted defense motions for acquittal on all charges.

More at Philly.com