Rochester Police Officer Mario V. Masic: “I do what I wanna do. My name's Cowboy. This is my block.”
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Lewis Powell wasn't expecting the Cowboy and his lackeys to be breaking into his legally parked car on Jefferson Avenue near Iceland Park as he looked over his shoulder around 9:00PM on Tuesday, August 13, 2013. And yet, there they were. The Cowboy was rifling through Mr. Powell's car and throwing his and his wife's possessions on the ground—including Mrs. Powell's purse, while two other officers, one white, one black—both men—stood by and watched.
An incredulous and outraged Mr. Powell approached the officers demanding to know why they were breaking into and searching his car, “Whatcha doin' man?! Whacha doin' in my car?!”
The Cowboy turned to Mr. Powell and told him, “I do what I wanna do. My name's Cowboy. This is my block.”
In an effort not to confuse folks, Cowboy is a street name for Rochester Police Department officer Mario Masic who wears a uniform and terrorizes the Jefferson Avenue neighborhood as well as the 19th Ward.
Mario Masic was the officer who arrested Emily Good who was charged with obstruction of governmental administration as she was videotaping a racially motivated traffic stop in front of her 19th Ward home on May 12, 2011. Her charges were dropped by the District Attorney after severe public outcry ensued. Read more stories related to Good, her arrest, and current candidacy for Monroe County Sheriff on Rochester Indymedia.
No doubt, Masic has committed other enraging, illegal, and unconstitutional acts in the neighborhood as many residents can attest.
At this point, Mrs. Powell approached the scene. Masic told the African American officer to search and detain her. He also ordered the white officer to detain Mr. Powell. Neither officer looked especially happy at the situation, but complied anyway with the order from Masic, according to Mr. Powell.
No explanation was given for why Masic decided to break into Mr. Powell's car. No tickets were written and no one was arrested.
Masic, after finding nothing in the car, commanded the Powells to get in their car and leave. As the couple was trying to gather their scattered possessions, the police got into their cars and left the scene. Things ended around 10:00PM.
Mr. Powell plans on filing a complaint against the officers involved through Professional Standards Section sometime this week.
Mr. Powell is asking for help. If anyone has any video from this incident, please get a hold of Rochester Indymedia. We can be reached online at RochesterIndymedia@rocus.org or through Pastor Nina Warr at Inner Faith Gospel Tabernacle, located at 32 York Street. If you have stories about “Cowboy” please let us know.
