Civil Rights & Constitutional Law
Federal judge denies Parma’s bid to escape accountability for police retaliation over Facebook...
April 6, 2018
Tuesday, August 11, 2026
CLEVELAND, OH — Today, Lisa Gonzalez, on behalf of her 13-year-old minor child, filed private-citizen-initiated criminal charges in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas under R.C. 2935.09(A) and (D), asking a judge to find probable cause that Parma police officers Michael B. Frinzl, Olivia Bartulovic, and Ryan J. Sopko committed crimes, issue arrest warrants for them, and appoint a special prosecutor.
The citizen-initiated filing charges Officer Frinzl with multiple offenses, including second-degree felonious assault, child endangering, violating the child’s civil rights, falsification, tampering with evidence, and failure to report a crime. Officer Bartulovic faces criminal charges including second-degree felonious assault, child endangering, falsification, and complicity. Officer Sopko is criminally charged with assault, child endangering, failure to report, and complicity.
According to the affidavit, the charges stem from an August 13, 2025 incident at Walters Grove Park. After police responded to a minor dispute among 13-year-old friends, the child tossed a stick at the rear hatchback door of his mother's van while standing far away from officers. In response, officers chased down the 70-pound child, tackled him into the dirt, aggressively handcuffed him, and transported him to the Parma police station.
At the station, the charges allege and video shows, officers twice slammed the child’s head into walls.
The affidavit details graphic body-camera and station security footage supporting the criminal charges against the officers:
A video reel of the body-camera and overhead City of Parma security-camera footage depicting the police brutality is linked above and available on YouTube.
The affidavit alleges that the officers' brutality has left the child afflicted with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Under R.C. 2935.09(D) and R.C. 2935.10(A), private citizens with knowledge of facts may file an affidavit charging criminal offenses directly with a reviewing judge. The filing requests that the court issue arrest warrants forthwith for Officers Frinzl, Bartulovic, and Sopko, and refer the matter to an independent special prosecutor to handle prosecution, because of the obvious conflict of interest involving Parma municipal authorities.
Subodh Chandra, lead counsel for complainant Lisa Gonzalez and her child, issued the following statement regarding the criminal charges:
A mother had to file these charges because Parma officials have been dragging their feet and doing nothing, one year after the brutality incidents. When police officers commit violent felonies on video against a handcuffed, 70-pound child in their custody, they are not above the law. When law-enforcement institutions fail to act, Ohio law affords citizens the right to present evidence directly to a judge. The affidavit alleges that body-camera footage shows Officers Frinzl, Bartulovic, and Sopko committed brutal acts of felonious assault, child endangerment, and cover-up falsification. Ms. Gonzalez asks the court to find probable cause, issue warrants for their arrest, and appoint an independent special prosecutor to hold them criminally accountable.
The family is represented by Subodh Chandra and Emily Bohatch. The charges were filed in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas, as Case No. CR-26-714649, and are available here.
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