Father Of Teenage Boy Assaulted By Firefighter Says Two Charges Aren't Enough

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - In the eyes of David McGovern: "The City of Pittsburgh is not doing their job when their people get out of line. It seems like they are covering up for the people that work for them."

McGovern is referring to the two misdemeanor charges filed against a Pittsburgh Firefighter involved in an altercation with his 13-year-old son.

"And I'm wondering why there haven't been more than two charges filed against the man," McGovern says.

Just after noon on June 25, 46-year-old firefighter Thomas D'Andrea says he called the police several times believing the teenager was vandalizing a truck parked under the Parkway East overpass.

Most of the incident was caught on cell phone video by the boy's 16-year-old sister.

McGovern says D'Andrea confronted the teen.

"He tells my son, 'You better run. I called the cops,'" McGovern says.

"My son said 'I haven't done anything wrong' and walks over to his sister in the park, and that's when he jumped on him."

D'Andrea told police the boy took a swing at him.

McGovern says it was the other way around.

"He attacked my son, swung on him. And my son defended himself and swung back, and that's when the man put my son on the playground equipment," McGovern says.

"While he was down there he kneed him a couple times in the ribs and punched him in the face, which is where the bloody mouth came from."

Police arrived and looked at the video but did not arrest D'Andrea.

Misdemeanor charges of simple assault and criminal mischief were filed later.

While McGovern believes the incident was racially motivated, his attorney Blaine Jones does not share that view.

The city is continuing an internal investigation. D'Andrea was unavailable for comment. He has a hearing on the charges set for Aug. 19.