A Montgomery County man who was arrested for hitting a state police horse outside a pre-Super Bowl game has filed a lawsuit against the Philadelphia Eagles and police denying he punched the horse.
Andrew Tornetta, 20, of North Wales, Pa., was arrested by police outside Lincoln Financial Field on Jan. 21 before the Eagles beat the Vikings and charged with punching a state police horse, Samson, and the corporal riding him, with a “closed fist.”
In a lawsuit filed May 30, Tornetta claimed he never punched any horse and was wrongly attacked by officers. He also claims he’s been wrongly “demonized” in the press and social media.
According to TMZ, which broke the story of the lawsuit, Tornetta claims he was innocently moving with a crowd of Eagles fans when officers grabbed him, tore his shirt off, and began striking him with batons, and denies any “cruelty to animals.”
Police initially said Tornetta refused to leave, “became verbally combative,” and was grabbed by an officer to be arrested before allegedly striking the horse and corporal.
The city and police department did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit.
Watch video showing the aftermath of the incident below, via NJ.com.
