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Read the press release here.

Critics Want 'Real Discipline' for Officer who Pushed Pregnant Woman

 Sandra Amezquita with her 7-month-old son Kevin, with whom she was pregnant at the time of the incident in Sunset Park.
Sandra Amezquita with her 7-month-old son Kevin, with whom she was pregnant at the time of the incident in Sunset Park.
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DNAinfo/Nikhita Venugopal

SUNSET PARK — The police officer who pushed a pregnant woman in Sunset Park last year should face "real discipline" for his actions, according to the victim.

"What she wants is justice," said family spokesman Dennis Flores, translating for Sandra Amezquita, who spoke in Spanish during a press conference on Tuesday. 

Amezquita was shoved onto the pavement and then hit with a baton by an NYPD officer while she was five months pregnant last September. The Civilian Complaint Review Board found that the officer, who has not been named, acted improperly and would be docked vacation days for the incident, according to a CCRB letter sent to the family and attorney Norman Siegel, who represents Amezquita.

At the time, the pregnant mom said she was afraid for the safety and health for her unborn child. Her son Kevin was born seven months ago but Amezquita and her attorney would not comment on the boy's current health because of pending litigation. 

Siegel said he found it "troubling" that the public would not find out how many vacation days had been taken away from the officer and he called for greater transparency from the CCRB. 

"These people whose rights were violated won't know if it's one day, three days, seven days," Siegel said.

"That has to change because unless the public has confidence and trust in entities like the Civilian Complaint Review Board, we can't get to the point of improving police-community relations."

A lawsuit was filed against the city in January and the next hearing date is scheduled in the U.S. District Court in Brooklyn for Sept. 17. 

But Richard Emery, chairman of the CCRB, said the panel came to its decision based on the video of the incident and "without the cooperation" of Amezquita.

"I think the outcome is completely fair based on the evidence we had," Emery said. "We couldn't do any more without her cooperation."

Emery found it "hypocritical" that the CCRB was being criticized by Siegel and Amezquita after she was instructed "not to cooperate with us as a strategy for her money case," he said, referring to the ongoing lawsuit.

In the incident, which was caught on video and provided to the CCRB, Amezquita is seen landing on her stomach while officers attempted to arrest and restrain her.

Amezquita intervened while trying to stop her 17-year-old son, who is now 18, from being arrested for possession of a gravity knife. 

The police officer was placed on modified duty soon after the incident.