David Piegaro ’25 appeared in court for charges of simple assault and criminal trespass on Monday, Feb. 3, months after he was first arrested last April. The case centered on an altercation with Assistant Vice President for Public Safety Kenneth Strother on the steps of Whig Hall in the aftermath of the occupation of Clio Hall.
Piegaro, represented by Gerald Krovatin, was accompanied by his mother, his father, and his girlfriend. During the first day of the trial, which took over five hours, prosecutor Christopher Koutsouris, representing the state, called up several witnesses from the University’s Department of Public Safety (DPS) and one faculty member. Additionally, a variety of documents were submitted as exhibits to the court, and body camera footage from several members of DPS was shown. The trial was presided over by Princeton Municipal Court Judge John McCarthy III ’69.
Piegaro’s arrest on April 29 followed several chaotic hours of demonstrations around Clio Hall as pro-Palestine protesters occupied the building. After two protesters were arrested and led onto an awaiting TigerTransit bus on Elm Drive, students swarmed the bus en masse, banging on its windows and chanting “let them go.” Professor Max Weiss and Zia Mian, Co-Director of the Program in Science and Global Security, attempted to de-escalate the situation in consultation with Strother. The crowd eventually dispersed when the two arrestees were let off the bus.
Strother, who was the first witness to be questioned, claimed that he talked to Weiss and Mian in the hour after the arrests to try to pass messages along to the protesters. He also claimed that during this conversation, Piegaro attempted to listen in and record the conversation. When Strother asked Piegaro for privacy, the latter asserted his right to be in space. Then, Strother, Weiss, and Mian walked up the steps of Whig Hall. Piegaro followed them, according to a 20-second video recorded by Piegaro and played at the trial.
The main controversy of the trial was what happened in the ensuing minutes between Piegaro and Strother. Strother alleged that Piegaro, while trying to enter the building, had grabbed his arm and that Piegaro had fallen down the stairs as a result of a subsequent scuffle. Piegaro maintains that Strother pushed him down the stairs. Piegaro sustained bruised ribs and a concussion as a result of the fall.
Strother claimed that Piegaro had attempted to make his way into the building, which he said was locked. In Piegaro’s video, presented by the defense, Strother can be seen using his prox to gain access to Whig Hall and opening the door for Weiss and Mian. Piegaro then moved toward the entrance, though he did not enter the building due to Strother’s prevention.
Another point of contention raised during cross-examination was the accessibility of Whig Hall. The defense and prosecution discussed at length whether in the hours after the Clio occupation, the sensor on the building that allowed entry would allow students to scan in with their prox, thus raising controversy on whether Piegaro would have been allowed to enter the building.
At the end of Piegaro’s video, Strother can be seen reaching for Piegaro as Piegaro says, “Don’t touch me, man.” Strother claimed that in an attempt to prevent Piegaro’s entry, he reached out his arm to block Piegaro, but the latter grabbed and pushed him. Strother described the interaction as “very uncomfortable and surprising.” In the video and at the trial, however, the defense maintained that Strother had initiated contact.
In the ensuing altercation, Piegaro fell down the steps of Whig Hall. Strother claims that this was a result of Piegaro repeatedly grabbing him at the top of the stairs. Body camera footage from multiple officers, however, shows Piegaro repeatedly saying that he was “thrown down the stairs.”
Officer Delvy Frias, who was on the scene, was called up as the next witness. Frias said that he had seen Strother from afar with two people and had seen someone else trying to squeeze into the Whig building. Frias saw Strother begin to grapple with the person trying to get into Whig.
Mian was called up for direct and cross examination, claiming to have seen Piegaro fall and corroborating Strother’s story. He shared that he viewed Piegaro neither as an aggressor nor a protester, referencing his own previous interactions with many of the protesters.
The next witness to testify was Breh Franky, Security Operations Manager for DPS. Franky expressed that she witnessed Piegaro “charge” the door to Whig Hall. She had been watching from the bottom of the stairs, and at some point during the altercation between Strother and Piegaro, she began to walk up the stairs.
The court was shown Franky’s digital statement to Detective Martin Krzywicki, taped on Jan. 15 of this year. Strother and the University did not respond to emailed questions about why a seemingly key witness was interviewed months after the incident.
Franky additionally claims to have seen Strother fall and expressed that Piegaro was intentionally attempting to cause bodily injury.
The last witness for the day was Sergeant Richard Ross. The Defense presented the video of Piegaro’s statement to Ross to the court. In this video, Piegaro explains the events of the day, specifically Strother’s aggression towards him, and his intention to file a criminal complaint.
The trial is set to continue on Tuesday, Feb. 4 at 10 a.m., with the defense expected to call its first witnesses.
Christopher Bao is a head News editor for the ‘Prince.’ He is from Princeton, N.J. and typically covers town politics and life.
Luke Grippo is a staff News writer for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
Read More
Faculty amend academic regulations, introduce new Ph.D. program
Cynthia Torres and Jake MillerFaculty finalized amendments to the “Conduct of Undergraduate Courses of Study” on Feb. 4. Discussions included changes to language on examinations as well as the introduction of a new Ph.D. program.
Faculty finalized amendments to the “Conduct of Undergraduate Courses of Study” on Feb. 4. Discussions included changes to language on examinations as well as the introduction of a new Ph.D. program.
Tracking Trump’s executive orders on higher education
Daily Princetonian StaffIn the first weeks of his presidency, President Donald Trump and his administration have issued a slew of executive actions. The ‘Prince’ has compiled a list of such actions, which range from chaotic guidance on federal funding to new directives on Title IX.
In the first weeks of his presidency, President Donald Trump and his administration have issued a slew of executive actions. The ‘Prince’ has compiled a list of such actions, which range from chaotic guidance on federal funding to new directives on Title IX.
