A Black New Yorker was convicted after confrontation left two firefighters with knife wounds. Surveillance shows he tried to walk away.

Arthur Sumpter paid a visit to Dive 75 on March 12, 2019 as a triumphant man. By then, he had clocked two decades of working in data analytics, which paid the bills. But his true passion was stand-up comedy. Earlier that night, Sumpter performed a “particularly amazing” five-minute set at Carolines on Broadway— no easy task for a beginner.

He started his celebration with five friends with wine immediately after the set. When his buddies started to bicker, Sumpter decided to round out the night alone by grabbing a drink in a calmer environment and enjoy his success peacefully. He headed to Dive 75, assuming the Upper West Side bar would be vacant on a Monday Night.

Then-FDNY lieutenant Ryan Brito also found himself at Dive 75 that night, albeit with less deliberation. He was a regular. Brito was also celebrating a special night: His friend, a fellow firefighter James De Leon now retired in California, was visiting to watch his nephew perform a concert at Carnegie Hall. The two met at the bar and were later joined by De Leon’s family and Brito’s romantic partner. 

None of the bar’s patrons were in high spirits by the night’s end. Sumpter was taken from Dive 75 in handcuffs, while Brito and De Leon were taken to a hospital for knife wounds. Brito’s injuries in particular were life-threatening. 

Last month, a jury found Sumpter guilty on all four charges against him: first degree assault, attempted first degree assault, second degree assault and fourth degree criminal possession of a weapon. Today, he will count down to his April 22 sentencing date on Rikers Island, remanded last month after the conviction, despite his ex-lawyer’s request to keep him on bail to handle his personal affairs.

Brito, who was not charged, missed nearly a year of work while recovering from injuries sustained that night. After he returned to his post, he was promoted to FDNY Captain last year.

Witnesses gave differing accounts of what they saw during the trial which was held this past March. But most agree that tensions began to brew when Sumpter approached Brito’s party to address a dispute over collecting the belongings of a woman he met at the bar. 

As shown by surveillance footage, Brito is initially off to the side talking with De Leon, but soon inserts himself, animatedly. In his testimony, the firefighter said he frequently “talks with his hands.” Regardless, pointing and waving accompanied his words, as seen in surveillance footage from the bar.

SENSITIVE CONTENT WARNING: Some readers may find footage distressing

Video of the incident after Arthur Sumpter leaves the bar.

The bartender beckoned Sumpter to close out and leave. He does, after another extended exchange. Witness testimony and surveillance video both track Brito following Sumpter out. Sumpter pulls out his knife as the firefighter “barrels” toward him, and a physical altercation ensues. De Leon is shown attempting to get between them as other patrons add to the fray, eventually holding Sumpter over a railing as they try to wrest the knife from him. When police arrive, Sumpter is pinned to a car by several men. 

During the trial, Sumpter told the courtroom that he carried a knife out of fears of anti-Black and far-right violence, pointing specifically to an October 2018 incident on the Upper East Side that led to two Proud Boy members being convicted of attempted gang assault. The incident, Sumpter said, happened just a few blocks from the Target and Best Buy he regularly shopped at.

He said he followed the legal parameters while shopping for the weapon through a “layman’s Google perspective,” ensuring the blade was not too long and did not retract. Knives “are not illegal, but become illegal based upon how they are used or possessed,” according to the NYPD. 

Witnesses offered varying perspectives on what prompted the fight at Dive 75. Sumpter’s defense maintained he played rounds of Connect Four with a woman he met there, while prosecutors and Brito’s supporters argued Sumpter had more amorous intentions for the woman and that Brito stepped in to help get her home safely. The woman, identified as Katherine Sammis, ended her night hospitalized with a high alcohol blood volume and was treated with sedatives. 

A bartender called to testify recalled Sumpter and the woman chatting before she invited him to play Connect Four; the bartender said he also noticed her talking to Brito’s partner after leaving for the bathroom. Sammis herself testified that she thought Sumpter was hitting on her and asked Brito’s party if she could stand with them while she used her phone to order an Uber ride. She said she could not recall other details, pointing to “drinking a lot.”

Throughout the trial, Sumpter’s defense attorney alleged potential racial bias during the incident against his client, citing a 2018 federal discrimination lawsuit against the FDNY that named Brito as a defendant. The City ultimately settled with the plaintiff for $80,000. 

In the complaint, a former would-be firefighter accuses Brito of pressuring him to leave the department during his probationary period, “on account of his race and his perceived homosexuality.” The trainee, who is Hispanic, alleged that Brito, who also identifies as Hispanic, and another firefighter “ganged up” on him for leaving a funeral early, even as white colleagues who also took off prematurely were not subjected to similar treatment. 

Brito and another firefighter are also named in the complaint for allegedly berating the plaintiff for playing Pokémon Go, an augmented reality spinoff of the long-running franchise where players travel public spaces “catching” the fictional creatures. Days later, the trainee allegedly found a fake sign-in sheet containing an anti-gay slur that mockingly invited others to play Pokémon Go with him.

During the trial, Sumpter’s defense said the settlement was reflective of internalized racial bias and discrimination that fueled the Upper West Side incident. Brito denied any discriminatory views played a role in the confrontation, as well as denying any allegations of bullying the trainee in the previous case. He told the courtroom that his father, who is Mexican, came out as gay later in life. 

Then there’s the matter of self-defense. Witnesses, which mostly comprised of the other patrons who pinned down Sumpter and attempted to disarm him, gave differing accounts of whether Brito and De Leon hit him while trying to subdue him. Sumpter was later held in pre-arraignment detention for three days after the incident, and it remains unknown if he sustained any injuries in the fracas—although an officer did ask him to raise his shirt.

In his testimony, Brito admitted to running after Sumpter despite convincing him to leave the bar and “barreling” through the bar entrance, saying he was “manipulated” by Sumpter taunting him. Surveillance video shows the two continuing to exchange words while Sumpter finishes his beer and backs out of the bar. Brito did say in cross-examination that he made the “first aggressive move.” He said he was aware that Sumpter was carrying a knife when he rushed at him, informed by one of the other patrons after stepping outside previously during the exchange. But Brito said he did not think Sumpter would use it. 

Sumpter’s family said that they believed he acted in self-defense and also believed racial bias was present during the incident. 

“Arthur now has a new legal team and much more will be coming soon, including all actively seeking for Arthur Sumpter’s recent verdict at trial to be set aside before his sentencing, which is currently scheduled on 4/22/24 in Manhattan,” the family said in a statement released to the media. “Many are now fighting his recent conviction. Arthur—we love you and we support you.”

The FDNY declined to comment. Brito did not respond to attempts to reach him. (TK if things change).