Rebecca Brand
To date, all the attention following the Christmas Eve rock-throwing incident that shattered the front window of Rudy’s Restaurant has focused on the witness who was attacked afterward, leaving her battered and bruised.
Now Rudy’s wants to know when it’s their turn.
The witness, Rebecca Brand, told a detective on the case that Rudy’s definitely wants to press charges against the transient woman who Ms. Brand alleges threw the rock and then came after her to prevent her 911 call in progress.
In an email to a Detective Hill, Ms. Brand said she met a Detective Hall at the District Attorney’s Office with two others in attendance to discuss the crimes of the window breaking, and the assault on her.
“While in that meeting, I was told that Rudy’s Restaurant was not going to press charges on the window breaking. Not so, this is not correct, as I understand the current situation.
“I called Andrea Steward, the relative of Rudy (of) Rudy’s Restaurant that made the report to the police department, and asked her why she was not pressing charges. Andrea told me that was not the case, and in fact has a case number and wishes the charges to continue for the crime.
“She told me she thought by now she may have been contacted again about it, but hasn’t been contacted and wondered about what was going on. I told her that I would contact you with her email and phone number because she indeed would like to press charges.”
Ms. Steward declined to comment Sunday on the situation.
The complaint filed against Ms. Brand’s alleged assailant, Nelly Gackowska, charges her with second-degree robbery and grand theft from a person for allegedly taking Ms. Brand’s iPhone Pro from her against her will and without her consent.
“The woman stole the phone out of my hand TO STOP MY 911 CALL IN PROGRESS,” Ms. Brand told the News-Press. “The assailant knew I was on the phone with 911 at the time, and rushed to attack me to stop the phone call to 911, and to get the phone which had photos I had taken of her at the scene.”
Ms. Brand alleges the defendant repeatedly slammed her cellphone into her thigh in an attempt to wrest it from her hand.
Both charges are felonies, but the robbery charge is considered a serious, violent felony in that Ms. Gackowska allegedly took the phone “by means of force and fear.”
Further, the complaint lists aggravating factors, alleging the crime “involved great violence, great bodily harm, threat of great bodily harm or other acts disclosing a high degree of cruelty, viciousness or callousness,” and that the victim was “particularly vulnerable.”
The defendant has pleaded not guilty to both charges, and is scheduled to appear in court today for a hearing to determine if her formal preliminary hearing, now set for Tuesday, should proceed or whether it should be continued. A preliminary hearing is held for a judge to determine whether there is enough evidence against the defendant to proceed to trial.
The complaint against Ms. Gackowska does not list any charges pertaining to the breaking of the restaurant’s window.
Deputy District Attorney Elizabeth Branch, who is prosecuting the case, did not respond to a News-Press email last week inquiring whether the defendant would be charged in connection to the damage to the restaurant’s window.
email: nhartsteinnewspress@gmail.com
