New Jersey

New Jersey Teen Says Police Assaulted Him

A New Jersey family is claiming Paterson police assaulted a 17-year-old boy, leaving him bleeding and bruised when he didn't respond to questions about where he lived. 

Larry Martinez Garcia told NBC 4 partner station Telemundo-47 that he was parking his car when an unmarked police van pulled up and six officers stopped him. 

They checked his identification, Garcia said, but when they asked where he lived, he refused to answer. 

That's when they started punching him, apparently suspecting he had drugs, said Garcia. 

His family said officers later searched his home but found nothing. 

"I want justice to be made because it's not fair that innocent people should get beat up for no reason," he told Telemundo-47.

The family went to the police station Monday to file a formal complaint. Police Captain Richard Reyes told Telemundo-47 outside that police "take any allegations seriously" and that they would be investigating the report. 

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