Northeast Philly man sues 2 former cops in alleged beating

On New Year's Day, Michael Higgins lay on a Kensington sidewalk, blood pouring down his face, after one Philadelphia cop had punched him in the head and another had clubbed him from behind with a nightstick and stomped him with his steel-tipped boot, according to Higgins.

When the cops yanked him up off the ground, Higgins said that he felt a "pop" and pressed his palms against his cheeks to touch what felt like a warm glob of sticky gelatin. It was his left eyeball, dangling from its socket, he said.

"I started freaking out," said Higgins, 29, of Northeast Philly. "My eye was literally hanging out of my head. There was blood everywhere."

Yesterday, Higgins filed a civil lawsuit in federal court against former Officers Sheldon Fitzgerald and Howard Hill III.

The lawsuit, which also names Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey and the city as defendants, alleges that Fitzgerald and Hill had a habit of assaulting citizens, but police brass repeatedly looked the other way.

"These guys are thugs and, obviously, this was a pattern," said Higgins' attorney, Evan Shingles.

Fortunato Perri Jr., attorney for Hill and Fitzgerald, called the accusations "outlandish" and "ridiculous."

"They are good and decent men who, as police officers, worked to put the citizens of Philadelphia first," Perri said. "It's unfortunate that allegations like this, which are completely untrue, have jeopardized both their careers and their livelihoods."

Fitzgerald and Hill, both five-year veterans, had worked in the 25th Police District, in North Philly. In May, Ramsey suspended the officers without pay. Their dismissal came after Ramsey and District Attorney Lynne Abraham announced criminal charges against them in a police-brutality case unrelated to Higgins. In that case, Fitzgerald and Hill are charged with beating a graffiti vandal, who suffered a broken jaw, in August 2007.

Two months earlier, a North Philly teen claimed that Fitzgerald and Hill had punched him repeatedly after stopping him for violating the city's 10:30 p.m. juvenile curfew.

Higgins says that he's nearly blind in his left eye. Police spokesman Lt. Frank Vanore said that he couldn't comment on Higgins' lawsuit because the case is pending.

Higgins said that his ordeal began about 9:30 a.m. when he and his brother were on their way to see the Mummers Parade.

They were driving through Kensington when they saw a drug dealer who had ripped off his brother, selling him two bags of baking soda, Higgins said. Higgins, who grew up in Kensington, said that he knew the dealer from grade school and agreed to try to get his brother's money back. His brother stopped the car and Higgins walked to the corner of 5th and Westmoreland streets. The dealer returned $35.

As Higgins walked back to the car, Hill and Fitzgerald pulled up. Hill wanted to know what "a white boy" was doing in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood, according to Higgins.

Higgins said that he told Hill the truth, explaining the baking soda. "Oh yeah, did you get a receipt?" Hill asked sarcastically, according to Higgins.

Hill got out of the patrol car, slid on his gloves, and cuffed Higgins.

"He said, 'You're from Bensalem, ain't you?' and I said, 'Actually, no, I grew up at A and West,' " Higgins recounted. "Hill said, 'There is no such place.' I said, 'Not to be smart, officer, you're standing on Fifth and West. People who live in Kensington, we call Westmoreland 'West.' "

That's when Hill punched Higgins in the head, and Fitzgerald clubbed him with his nightstick and stomped on his head and chest, according to Higgins.

Temple Hospital doctors worked to repair Higgins' severed optical nerve and broken socket bone in hours-long surgery, medical records show.

Higgins was charged with resisting arrest and drug possession, but Municipal Judge Thomas Gehret discharged the case in July.

"No matter what [Higgins] was doing, nothing could justify the level of brutality and violence by these officers," Shingles said. "Their brutal, thuggish behavior really sets back all the good work that hundreds of officers do each day." *