The pregnant African woman that was beaten by a Rochester NY cop is currently being held in custody after her court appearance on September 17, 2013. Earlier this year, an eyewitness recorded a video of RPD cop Lucas Krull beating Brenda Hardaway.
The video shows Krull slamming her onto a car hood, slamming her to the ground, punching her in the head and kneeing her in her mid-section. Brenda Hardaway, the pregnant 21-year-old African woman is clearly heard telling the cop that she is pregnant and yelling "You're going to kill my baby!”
Brenda Hardaway, 21, intervened when police began harassing her 16-year-old brother, Romengeno Hardaway, and then moved to arrest him on Aug. 27, 2013. She refused to standby while the police began to beat him outside of their home.
On Tuesday, September 17, she pleaded not guilty to charges that she assaulted a Rochester policeman. Although the video shows that Hardaway was brutalized, she is accused of threatening police with a can of pepper spray and faces six charges including two felonies: second-degree assault and attempted obstructing governmental administration by means of self-defense spray device.
If convicted of second-degree assault, she faces a maximum of seven years in prison. In addition to the two felonies, Hardaway faces misdemeanor charges: second-degree obstructing governmental administration, third-degree menacing and resisting arrest.
At the hearing, Justice Francis Affronti said that the nature of the alleged crime, a Class D violent felony, led in part to his decision to increase bail from $7,500 to $25,000. The indictment also gave him concerns that Hardaway would have another encounter with law enforcement before her next court date, he said.
Her attorney, public defender Erik Teifke, argued at length in court over Affronti’s decision to increase bail, saying that Hardaway had never been convicted of any crimes, had never missed a court appearance in the past, was employed, and had a large extended family in Rochester, NY.
Outside the courtroom, Teifke said he was surprised about the decision. “The law says bail is designed to make sure people come back to court. You’ve got a woman who is asked to come back to court, and no one can point to any reason that she won’t come back to court on Nov. 12,” said Teifke. “If you apply the law, she walks out the door. I cannot explain why the judge increased the bail.”
RPD police chief James Sheppard, an African, defended Krull beating a pregnant African woman. Sheppard described Krull's punch to her head as nothing more than a "distractionary technique," meant to "change her channel."
Hardaway will return to court on Nov. 12 at 2 p.m. for pre-trial motions. Her brother, Romengeno Hardaway, who was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest in connection with the Aug. 27 incident, will appear in City Court on Sept. 18.
