New tapes released in White Castle police beating

(New York-WABC, June 7, 2006) (WABC) -- New videotapes were released Wednesday of the young men charged with beating police officer Eric Hernandez at a White Castle.

Hernandez was later shot and killed by fellow officers in a tragic case of friendly fire.

The tapes are of police interviews with the suspects who claim they beat Hernandez in self defense.

We get the story for the first time in their own words, from three of the six defendants. And they insist that the off-duty officer picked a fight with them.

Edwin Rivera, defendant: "He never identified himself as a cop."

The three suspects spoke with detectives and prosecutors at the 46th Precinct in the days that followed the shooting.

They insisted that Eric Hernandez was drunk and belligerent when he walked into the White Castle at 4:45 in the morning and argued with one of the young men over whether they had been given free food.

"It was just a whole bunch of nonsense that he was spitting out of his mouth. ... Me I got into it too, arguing back with him," a defendant said.

Rivera told prosecutors that at one point Hernandez flashed a gun tucked into his waistband as he left, although that is not clear from the restaurant's surveillance video.

When he returned seconds later, Rivera said he punched Hernandez in self defense.

"I'm looking at him like what is he about to do ...are you about to pull that gun out and starting shooting me? He just stood there looking around, looking at everybody," Rivera said.

With that, it became a free for all before Hernandez ran through the door and into the parking lot. It was at that moment that Hernandez mistakenly drew his gun on a bystander and was shot to death by a police officer when he refused to drop it.

A total of six young men were later arrested on gang assault charges.

Mark Jay Heller, defense attorney: "Edwin Rivera acted responsibly and legally and had every right to take the steps that he took."

The PBA says that's outrageous. PBA President Patrick Lynch said in a statement: "There is nothing that anyone can say or show me that could come close to justifying the beating ... [the beating] set in motion events that resulted in his death and they must be held fully accountable for it."

What is missing in all of this is the voice of Officer Eric Hernandez. And for that reason, we may never really know what happened early that morning at the White Castle. A Bronx jury will have to answer that question.

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