Janathan Rivera, a BUPD officer since 2024, was fired by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in 2023, where he was a public safety officer, for use of excessive force on a 69-year-old hospital patient, state records show. 

In security camera footage obtained by the Daily Free Press through a public records request, Rivera is seen grabbing the patient by the collar. The video then shows the patient falling to the ground, which the patient later alleged was because Rivera handled him “forcibly.”

While several BUPD officers have faced disciplinary actions from 1984 to April 13, 2026, either by a previous employer or BUPD itself, Rivera is the only officer currently employed by the University who was previously fired, state officer disciplinary records show. 

Rivera later filed a complaint with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination against BIDMC — a teaching hospital of Harvard University Medical School — alleging he faced racial discrimination and retaliation. 

BIDMC’s legal counsel issued a statement in response to the complaint in March 2024, stating the claims were baseless. The Daily Free Press found no results for “Janathan Rivera” or the docket number in MCAD’s searchable database for hearing decisions.

Rivera did not respond to multiple requests for a comment or interview.

“The Boston University Police Department maintains a rigorous hiring process that includes comprehensive background checks, oral interviews, and medical and psychological exams,” BUPD Chief Robert Lowe wrote in an email to The Daily Free Press. 

“In addition, BUPD officers are required to complete a Massachusetts Police Training Committee Certified police academy and are required to be Massachusetts P.O.S.T. Commission Certified,” he added.

After the incident, the patient — whose name was redacted in documents — raised concerns over Rivera’s conduct to BIDMC’s patient relations department, who then communicated the complaint via email to BIDMC Public Safety’s Lieutenant David Hoffman. 

The patient said to patient relations that he had been hospitalized many times, was known by staff and security and had a “reputation for bad behavior,” the email states.

After being discharged from BIDMC on July 30, the patient was told by an Uber driver that their car was waiting at a local Dunkin’ Donuts, but when the patient arrived, the car was gone, the email states. 

The patient told patient relations he defecated on himself — as he cannot control his bowel movements — and entered a bathroom in the emergency department, took off his pants and began “cleaning himself,” the email states. The patient said he was upset and yelling.

A security guard told the patient he had to leave and threatened to pull him out if he did not comply, the email states. Three officers stood outside the bathroom when the patient emerged. 

The patient alleged in his complaint that Rivera forcibly grabbed him by the collar and threw him to the ground. At the time, the patient was exposed and only wearing a shirt, the email states. 

Afterward, another officer gave the patient pants and ordered him another Uber, the email states, and it was suggested the patient call patient relations to report Rivera’s alleged use of excessive force. 

It is not clear in the email who told the patient to file the complaint. 

The patient’s complaint prompted an internal investigation into Rivera, BIDMC’s incident report states. Rivera was placed on administrative leave while Hoffman reviewed the incident, documents show. 

Hoffman wrote in the incident report that he reviewed security footage of the incident and agreed with the patient’s allegations of Rivera’s excessive force. Hoffman also spoke with Rivera and the other two officers involved in the incident, he wrote in the report.

One officer said physical force had been used, but the patient fell to the ground without being pulled. Another officer said Rivera grabbed the patient and forcibly pulled him to the ground. 

Rivera told Hoffman he tried to escort the patient out of the building and grabbed “just above the left elbow,” when the patient either fell or threw himself to the ground.

Hoffman concluded that Rivera violated multiple hospital policies, including failure to direct security officers to guide the patient, failure to submit a Department of Public Safety report after the incident and demonstrated a disregard of respect for the patient. 

Rivera was fired from his position at BIDMC on Aug. 11, 2023. 

Professor Shira Diner, a criminal law clinic professor at Boston University School of Law, said Rivera’s actions seemed like “really poor policing” after reviewing the security footage. 

“They’re in a crowded space like that, taking someone down in that way,” Diner said. “Unless it was a real emergency, [it] also has the potential not only to hurt that individual, but people around them.”

Diner said the allegations regarding not taking care of the patient after the officers potentially injured him are “incredibly problematic.”

Rivera was hired at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Jan. 2018. 

Rivera previously attended the Boston Police Academy, but was dismissed after just two months for “academic issues,” according to a 2024 position statement written by BIDMC’s legal counsel.

BIDMC legal documents identified Rivera as an officer with shortcomings in report writing whose day-to-day performance “reflected instances of poor judgment and carelessness.”

During his employment at BIDMC, Rivera was also allegedly found to have an invalid firearm license the day before an upcoming Massachusetts State Police inspection of the public safety department.

Diner said the Massachusetts POST Commission has improved transparency efforts for departments under private organizations. 

“I think that they’re sometimes allowed to get away with behavior that wouldn’t be acceptable if they were employed in the public sphere as law enforcement,” she said. 

While the incident alone does not yield enough information to determine whether Rivera’s actions were legally justified, Diner said, the situation could have been handled differently.

“It does not seem like this is a good way to help people who are in crisis by any stretch of the imagination,” she said.

Jack Schwed contributed to the reporting of this article.