NEWPORT BEACH : Jury Backs Officers in Brain Injury Case

A Superior Court jury on Thursday rejected a Fullerton carpenter’s claim that two Newport Beach police officers beat him during a 1987 arrest, inflicting severe brain damage.

Jurors deliberated only a few hours before finding that Newport Beach Police Officer Craig Frizzell and Reserve Officer Paul Habermehl were not responsible for the head injuries sustained by John Picco, 51.

“There was just not enough evidence, no proof, that these officers did anything wrong,” said juror Sue Gosser, a consultant from Fountain Valley.

Picco was intoxicated in September, 1987, when the officers stopped him on suspicion of being drunk in public. Picco was handcuffed and made to sit on a sidewalk bench.

Picco’s attorney, John R. Cogorno, told jurors that the officers then hit Picco, causing him to fall to the ground and strike his head against the pavement. The officers said Picco caused his own injuries when he jumped up off the bench to flee, tripped and hit his head on the ground.

An investigation by the Police Department also found no evidence of wrongdoing, said the officers’ attorney, David Brobeck. He said his clients are relieved.

“They’ve had this hanging over their heads for several years now,” Brobeck said. “They’re grateful.”

Cogorno declined to comment after the verdict was announced. He had asked jurors to determine that the officers violated Picco’s civil rights and award Picco up to $3.5 million for his injuries.

Jury forewoman Cecilia Matuschek, a business developer from Laguna Hills, said jurors could not believe the testimony of Picco’s companion on the night of the incident. Michael O’Neal, a transient who claimed to have seen the beating but could not be found to testify in the trial, had earlier given conflicting statements to police about the incident.