Irate NYC councilwoman accused of biting cop in scream-filled clash at homeless shelter protest: sources

An irate city councilwoman allegedly bit a deputy NYPD chief during a scream-filled clash with cops at a protest against a homeless shelter in Brooklyn, according to officials and video of the incident.

Councilwoman Susan Zhuang (D-43rd Dist.) was arrested on a slew of charges including second-degree and third-degree assault and resisting arrest Wednesday morning at a demonstration with “Residents Against Homeless Shelters” in Gravesend, police confirmed.

Zhuang, 38, allegedly tried to prevent officers from arresting another woman at the protest grabbing and pushing police barricades into cops — then bit Deputy Chief of Patrol Borough Brooklyn South Frank DiGiacomo on the arm when he attempted to pull the councilwoman away from the barriers, law enforcement sources said.

Police confirmed on the phone to The Post that “multiple officers were assaulted” in the Wednesday morning demonstration and that several other demonstrators were also taken into custody.

Footage of Zhuang’s arrest shows the lawmaker cable-tied to a barricade while screaming incoherently as police attempt to take her into custody.

Another video shows Zhuang — wearing a bright pink top and patterned pants — being hauled away by police while protesters continue to scream off screen.

DiGiacomo’s arm was left with teeth marks and broken skin, according to a photo and the criminal complaint.

The officer was treated with an “anti-viral cocktail” and given a tetanus shot after the councilwoman allegedly chomped on his arm, the complaint said.

A council source told The Post that Zhuang’s behavior is “disqualifying for a council member.”

“Violence against our cops is unacceptable and just because you are a member of the Common Sense Caucus doesn’t make it right at all,” they said.

“Biting a cop is a felony. We need to back the blue, not bite the blue.”

A Democratic operative said this is the second time a Common Sense Caucus member has had a run-in with the law.

“Another pro-police and law & order Common Sense Caucus member running into serious criminal problems. Where is the common sense in bringing a gun to a rally, and now biting a cop?,” they said, referring to Councilwoman Inna Vernikov (R-48th Dist.) bringing a gun to a pro-Palestinian rally.

Vernikov has since had those charges dropped.

Zhuang, meanwhile, is facing charges of second-degree assault, third-degree assault, obstructing governmental administration, resisting arrest, unlawful assembly, second-degree harassment and two counts of disorderly conduct.

She was released following an arraignment Wednesday evening and is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 15.

The councilwoman would not speak to reporters following the court appearance, but her attorney said “the facts” of what happened during the protest and her arrest would soon come out — and implied that the charges would be dropped.

“I’m confident that once the facts and circumstances come out about what happened this morning, the case will not proceed,” defense attorney Sarah Krissoff said outside the courtroom. “We will wait for that process to unfold and do not want to get into the facts at this time.”

She added that she expects the charges related to the alleged bite of the NYPD officer would not hold.

“A lot of times during the course of arrests things happen,” Krissoff said of the allegation. “An attack on a police officer constitutes a felony charge and it’s charged as a felony. But I expect that the case will not proceed as charged.”

The lawyer also noted that Zhuang sustained bruises during the altercation with cops — but did not place blame on any one person or group for the marks.

“During the course of the event, she was injured,” she said. “She has back pain and bruises on her legs, her arms and on her wrists.”

Zhuang, who let Krissoff do all the talking, showed the bruises on her arms to reporters and photojournalists’ cameras.

Assemblywoman Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who sat front row during Zhuang’s hearing, said the councilwoman was assaulted and injured while helping an 80-year-old woman at the protest.

“From the video, you will see that she was attacked,” she said, noting that she wasn’t there herself. “They grabbed her, choked her. And we don’t know who. We are not making allegations… When you’re in the midst of all of that, things happen.”

Hermelyn, who represents parts of Brooklyn, gave Zhuang a long hug after she walked out of the courtroom.

“Susan Zhuang, our council member, was there at a regular protest, fighting for her constituents at 5:30 a.m., where you had developers, who were there making noise, interrupting the neighborhood. And this was a situation, where people who have the right to protest,” she told reporters.

Police confirmed 150 people were at the demonstration, but had no details about other charges.

Zhuang posted a video on X just before 6 a.m. Wednesday screaming at a cop about the noise coming from the construction site.

“We have a right to ask them about their permit,” one person can be heard saying to an officer.

“They have to have a permit,” another screamed and added, “I cannot hear anything because it’s so loud.”

“No it’s not, it’s not making noise, you’re screaming for no reason,” the officer responds calmly.

One unidentified person then begins to question the officer about whether the “mayor is above the law.”

A City Hall spokesperson said the Adams administration is “committed to building this much-needed shelter.”

“Every community must have the resources they need to support their most vulnerable neighbors, and this community has no shelters,” the spokesperson said in a statement to The Post.

The site has active demolition permits issued by the Department of Buildings to take down the existing building.

The protest comes just months after more than 2,000 New Yorkers incensed over the city’s plan to build a homeless shelter in their Brooklyn neighborhood descended on City Hall.

Residents, many brandishing signs and American flags, blasted the 32-room shelter — designed to accommodate up to 150 adult men — saying it could become a magnet for drugs, crime and other trouble when it opens later this year.

Leading the opposition were Zhuang and Assemblyman William Colton (D-47th Dist.), with the rally growing so massive that it spilled over into City Hall Park.

The new shelter — proposed for 2501 86th St. at 25th Avenue in Gravesend — would be constructed as a hotel, complete with a community center, and then contracted by the city, Zhuang said at the time.

Zhuang contends that the city jammed the plan through without consulting its neighbors.

A city Department of Social Services spokesperson at the time denied Zhuang’s claim, saying the city first notified the community in November 2023.