Screen grab of Mr. Gugino being pushed by Buffalo police; June 9th tweet in question
On June 9, the President tweeted "...I watched, he fell harder than was pushed,” suggesting that an Buffalo NY protester’s backward fall from a forceful push by a police officer was a “set up.”
In this case, the President was half right. The fall was harder than the push. But not because it was a set up. It was not. Instead, the fall was a reflection of ingrained human reflexes and the fundamental laws of physics, neither of which can be controlled.
Last week, 75 year old Martin Gugino, was unexpectedly and forcefully pushed by a police officer, lost his balance and fell backwards, his head directly impacting the cement sidewalk. He immediately began to bleed from the ear, usually a sign of a serious, and often fatal, fracture at the base of the skull.
Humans, from about the time we learn to walk, invoke deep-seated, involuntary reflexes that are the body's attempt at protecting the head in a backward fall. We bend at the knees and waist to lower our center of gravity. We tip our head forward. We take backward steps trying to catch up with our tipping body.
And if these reflexes don't work? The laws of physics take over, and the head gains speed as it nears impact with the ground. The speed is not only gravity at work, but the consequence of the backward rotation caused by the initial push.
Mr. Gugino's fall was not a "set up." He fell because he was pushed violently enough to overcome his natural, protective reflexes. The rest was fundamental physics.
Hayes+Associates, Inc. (https://www.hayesassoc.com) is an expert witness and consulting firm based in Corvallis, OR. The company brings more than 75 years of collective experience in academic research, university teaching and forensic testimony to practice areas that include vehicle collisions, premises safety, slips and falls, products liability, worker safety, sports and recreation, patent litigation and criminal matters.