Michael Pigott Commits Suicide

Lt. Michael W. Pigott, 46, a 21-year veteran of the NYPD committed suicide on Thursday Oct. 2, 2008 (his birthday). He leaves behind his wife, Susan, two sons and a daughter. He was the police officer who gave the order to taser Iman Morales, 35, who subsequently fell 10ft off the ledge of his apartment building and died. See the details here. and Learn more about Iman Morales here.

Following Morales' death, Pigott was stripped of his gun and badge and assigned to a job with the department's motor vehicle fleet — a huge demotion for a 21-year veteran who headed the elite team known as the Emergency Services Unit (ESU). Police Officer Nicholas Marchesona, 37, the officer who tasered Morales on orders from Pigott, was also disciplined. He was reassigned to desk duty but was not stripped of his gun and badge. The Brooklyn district attorney's office and the police department are both investigating the incident.

The episode also casts the spotlight on the NYPD's emergency services unit, a team of officers who deal with dozens of hostile scenarios every day, such as hostage situations, suicidal suspects, building collapses and hazardous materials threats.

"These guys are the best of the best, they really are," said Eugene O'Donnell, a professor of police studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. "When people need help, they call the police, and when police need help, they call the ESU."

Both Pigott and Marchesona were ordered to undergo counseling. Pigott was remorseful and distraught. He apologized directly to Morales' family saying he was truly sorry for what had happened.

"I am truly sorry for what happened to Mr. Morales," Pigott had said. "I feel terrible about what happened to the man."

He would not discuss the incident, but suggested his career would never be the same.

"I've been a police officer for 21 years," Pigott said. "And I loved being with the Emergency Services Unit."

On Thursday, Oct. 2, the morning of Morales' funeral, Pigott went alone to Floyd Bennett Field, the headquarters of the police Emergency Services unit, in Brooklyn, took a 9-mm Glock from another officer's locker (having been relieved of his own weapon) and committed suicide.

Nearby was a photo of his wife and children and a note. He didn't want his family to see him get arrested, according to sources familiar with the note, and he didn't want anyone to blame Officer Nicholas Marchesano, who fired the Taser at Morales on his order.

Marchesano, who has been on desk duty since the incident, could not be reached Thursday. A police officer posted outside his Staten Island home said no one from the family wanted to talk to reporters.

Reactions to Michael Pigott's Suicide

“The lieutenant was deeply distraught and extremely remorseful over the death of Iman Morales in Brooklyn last week,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg, said at a City Hall news conference. “Sadly, his death just compounds the tragedy of the loss of Mr. Morales.”

"On behalf of all of the members of the New York City Police Department, I extend deepest condolences to the family and friends of Lt. Michael W. Pigott, who served with dedication for 21 years," Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said.

"Lt. Pigott was an outstanding member of that unit who was called upon to make a split second decision which had a tragic result. Contrary to many accounts, that decision did indeed weigh very heavily on him," Thomas R. Sullivan, president of the Lieutenants' Benevolent Association, said in a prepared statement. "It's worth remembering that our police officers are not supermen but rather flesh and blood human beings who deal with life and death situations that most of us cannot even imagine on a daily basis."

"It's horrible," Morales' aunt, Ann DeJesus Negron, said after Morales' funeral at Our Lady of Pompeii Church. "This is not the justice we want. This really disturbs the whole family. This is not something we would want anyone to go through." She continued, “I’m sure he was asking for forgiveness,” she said. “And I’m sure that Iman would want us to forgive.” And, referring to the lieutenant’s family, she added, “I just wish that they find peace and healing and trust in life again.”

“Not your typical police officer,” said Jon O’Shaughnessy, a New York City fire marshal and an old friend. “That’s why he was a lieutenant. He was a very positive, upbeat guy. He could have retired last year.” The friend could say no more: His voice broke, and he began to cry.

Lt. Michael Pigott's Biography

Lt. Michael Pigott earned a bachelor’s degree in Aeronautics from Dowling College and joined the Police Department in 1987 after failing, because of a hearing problem, to become an Air Force pilot. He did become a licensed civilian pilot, however, as well as a motor boat operator. His police work included many years as an officer and a sergeant assigned to the 73rd and 81st precincts in Brooklyn and the 103rd Precinct in Queens.

He joined the Emergency Services Unit, in 2002, whose officers face a wide range of challenges, including rescuing window-washers dangling outside towers and trying to talk people out of killing themselves. He was cited 11 times for excellent police duty and 9 other times for meritorious service.

Lt. Michael W. Pigott and Iman Morales both victims of the Taser!

A Tribute to Iman Morales - Tasered to Death

Iman Morales, 35, died Sept. 24, 2008. He did not die a natural death. He was tasered while he was on a ledge outside his apartment building and fell 10ft, headfirst to his death. He was a disturbed man who had not taken his medication and according to reports "freaked out". The circumstances, especially the actions of the police, surrounding his death are being investigated.

I posted the facts concerning his demise on this blog. One of his longtime friends happened to read my blog and contacted me. His name is Raul Anthony. I invited Raul to write me and give us all a better understanding of who Iman Morales was. Raul wrote back and I am posting his letter and pictures of Iman here without any further comment, except to say: Thanks to Raul for caring and giving us all an insight into a human being who so tragically lost his life. You are a good friend. God Bless you.

Raul Anthony's Letter

Iman was one of the best friends I ever had...I rarely used the term"best friend" however with him I did.
We had so much fun together dancing and laughing at ourselves  and each-other...we had our own language...some of the most memorable times of my life were spent with Iman.he was so silly and goofy...he was very much like a little boy.he LOVED going to the movies.we had movie nite every Tuesday...rain or shine. he also LOVED Twizzlers and Dr Pepper...that was a must have. he was always stopping to say hello to dogs and cats out on the streets...sometimes he even carried cat food in his bag to feed to strays... he was always concerned about my well being and constantly told me that he believed in me and that I was "super talented" in his own words. he was so generous to me with his kind words and encouragement. I am a make-up artist and have always been one ever since I have known Iman.

I was signed to be represented by Ford artist a few days ago.It has been a dream of mine to be represented by a big agency for the last 10 years...and it finally happened just days after Iman passed away.

I moved to NYC to live with Iman in Sept of 2007...it was his thought that living in NYC and working on my portfolio would be very good for me...I was ready to leave back in March...it was very tough for me to be in NYC...very little money sometimes eating one pack of Ra men noodles a day...extreme whether and the general hostility in the air were we were living in Brooklyn was just too much for me.It was Iman the talked me into staying and finishing what I had started so that when I did go back I would be more "valuable" as an artist and have a really strong book to show...I stayed and worked my ass off to complete my portfolio and came back home to San Francisco on Sept 11 2008...  Iman died on Sept 24 2008 and on Sept 29 2008 I was signed to Ford.

Getting signed was a bit confusing for me because I was happy however I was also very sad that I was not able to call Iman and tell him the great news. because of all the people I know in this world...he would have been the happiest to hear that news....and it would made him smile really big.

Iman wherever you are I want to to know that because of you and your unconditional love for me my future looks brighter than it ever has. I thank you for that from deep down in my heart. thank you for the gift of friendship...it will be cherished within my soul forever. I love you. I miss you.

Always your friend...your brother and one of your soul mates.

Raul

P.S.Thank You Shaun.

Another Taser Death

Iman Morales, 35, is dead after falling 10ft headfirst onto the sidewalk in front of his Brooklyn home. This was no accident. He was tasered by a police officer, under orders from lieutenant Michael Pigott, a 21-year veteran of the force. The officer, a 10-year veteran of the force, who fired the taser, which can deliver a five-second jolt of 50,000 volts of electricity through two wires, has not been identified.

"When they Tasered him, he froze and pitched forward. He fell on his head," said witness Ernestine Croom, 40. "They didn't put out a mattress or a net or anything."

"They didn't try to brace his fall. They did nothing. I've seen a lot of things in my time. But what they did was wrong," said neighbor Kirk Giddens, 39, a mental health worker.

According to neighbors Morales, who was emotionally disturbed, had "freaked out" earlier in the day, and his mother called the police at 1:52 p.m., saying he was threatening to hurt himself and had stopped taking his medication. An Emergency Service Unit (ESU) police truck showed up around 2:05p.m. at Morales' third-floor apartment at 489 Tompkins Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.

Morales refused to open the door of his apartment for the police and instead opened a window and crept naked onto the fire escape. As the police forced their way in, Morales made his way up to the 4th floor apartment, occupied by Tanya Wright.

"He tried to get into my window. He banged. He said, 'Let me in! Let me in!' But no way I'm letting a naked man into my apartment," said neighbor Tanya Wright, 40.

Unable to gain entry to Tanya's apartment, Morales crawled down the fire escape, screaming and posing for the crowd, which by now had gathered outside, as he went.

"When the police came, he was screaming, 'You're gonna kill me and I'm gonna take everyone with me. I'm gonna die and you're gonna die with me,'" said neighbor Sean Johnson, 43.

With the police close by, Morales left the fire escape and stepped onto the 2-foot-wide metal top of a roll-down security gate for a ground-floor business. He then ripped an 8-foot fluorescent light bulb from the business' sign and used it to swing at the police.

“He was naked and he kept screaming,” said Joseph Adrien, who works at a nearby dry cleaners. Another witness said Mr. Morales’s mother was kept off to the side, pleading with the police to let her calm her son’s nerves, but being told repeatedly that it was now a police matter.

It was at this point that lieutenant Michael Pigott, gave the order to an ESU officer on the ground to taser Morales. The officer complied and half an hour after his mother called the police, Morales hit the ground at 2:27 p.m. headfirst and died.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU_lI3o_WgI]

Here is a videotaped recording of Iman Morales as he was tasered by the police.

[wpvideo hPt04XYr]

The police said an officer at the scene had radioed for an inflatable bag, and it was not clear why the bag had not arrived when Mr. Morales fell, or why the officers had not waited for it before using the Taser on Mr. Morales.

According to a statement by the department’s chief spokesman, Paul J. Browne:

“None of the E.S.U. officers on the scene were positioned to break his fall, nor did they devise a plan in advance to do so,” the statement said, referring to the elite police Emergency Service Unit.

Michael Pigott, the lieutenant who gave the order to use the Taser, was placed on modified assignment without his gun and badge. The 37-year-old officer who fired the weapon was put on administrative duty. An investigation by the Police Department and the Brooklyn district attorney is ongoing.

Officers in the Emergency Service Unit receive intensive training for exactly the kind of crisis depicted on the video. Their training includes how to deal with emotionally disturbed people and the use of nonlethal restraints. They are taught how to use air bags and how to deal with would-be jumpers.

Last year, members of the unit helped respond to most of the 80,000 calls the Police Department received for reports of emotionally disturbed people, the police said. Stun guns are used about 300 times on average. So far this year, stun guns have been used 180 times. No other deaths have been reported.

The use of the taser in the Iman Morales case appears to have broken departmental guidelines. The order not to use tasers in certain situations appears in a 10-page interim order issued by the Police Department in June.

The order discusses types of people the Taser should not be used on, including children, the elderly and pregnant women, and instructs officers not to use them “in situations where the subject may fall from an elevated surface.”

Spokesman Paul J. Browne said that the Brooklyn district attorney's office has asked that the NYPD not question either officer - leaving open the possibility that criminal charges may be applied later.

City Councilman Peter F. Vallone Jr., chairman of the Public Safety Committee, said in a telephone interview that the situation could have been handled better by the police.

“My first take is that while I’m sure there are no experts out there on how to handle a crazy naked man with a weapon on top of a ledge, I’m also sure this wasn’t the right way, ” Mr. Vallone said on Wednesday evening.

“A situation like that is never going to end in a good way,” Mr. Vallone said after watching the video. “The most important thing is that no innocent bystanders or police got hurt. But clearly, it could have been handled better.”

Mr. Vallone said a public hearing on the department’s use of Tasers might be needed to fine-tune its policy on using them.

One frequent critic of the Police Department, State Senator Eric L. Adams of Brooklyn, said that the death of Mr. Morales underscored its continued inability to deal with the mentally ill. Standing in front of Mr. Morales’s building, Senator Adams said, “You can give someone desk duty, you can suspend someone, you can fire someone, but these are Band-Aids.”

“His mother called 911,” said Sharonnie Perry, a community advocate who lives down the street. “She called for assistance and the assistance she got was her son being killed.”