Torsten Ove, a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette staff writer, reported on April 24, 2001 that a confrontation between police and community transpired into a conflict. The altercation began when Officer Anthony Cortopassi noticed a couple passing a cigarette back and forth on the West End Overlook, a notorious "hot stop" for marijuana smoking. Officer Cortopassi approached the couple. When he did so he over heard possible suspect Dan Troiano's girlfriend whisper, "Dan, it's a cop!" Officer Cortopassi then claimed Troiano immediately threw what he assumed to be a marijuana cigarette away before he could detain the individuals for possession of a controlled substance. Dan Troiano claimed Officer Cortopassi then shoved him around while he was being handcuffed to a fence, injuring his wrist badly enough to require surgery to repair it. Officer Cortopassi claimed that he applied a "pain compliance" hold and handcuffed Troiano after Troiano threw an elbow during a pat-down search. The altercation resulted in the trial of Officer Anthony Cortopassi on the basis of using excessive force. .
As classified by the United States of America, an excessive use of force means an officer has "used more than the amount of force necessary to get control of suspects and protect themselves and other." (Criminal Justice, Joel Samaha) But how does an officer know what exactly is the correct amount of force necessary to control a situation? Since possible criminal situations induce both non-violent and violent responses by possible suspects, the officer's discretion to use force is at a premium. But want happens when the officer is the one who initiates violence in retaliation to what a possible suspect might have said or tried to do, regardless if any criminal activity took place? Again, discretion by the officer must be weighted to maintain a situation from escalating. It is clear that with the definition of excessive force as prescribed by the United States of America, uncertainties can persist, as is the case with the exchange between Officer Cortopassi and Dan Troiano.