Press Release

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced that Frank Cavalluzzi was sentenced today to 14 years in prison following his conviction on nine counts of attempted murder for attacking Black Lives Matter demonstrators. The 2020 assault in Whitestone began with Cavalluzzi yelling racial slurs at the BLM supporters and escalated to him charging at the demonstrators wearing a glove with serrated blades and then attempting to run them over on the sidewalk with his SUV.

District Attorney Katz said: “A dangerous man is being held accountable for unleashing terror on peaceful demonstrators who were simply exercising their First Amendment right. Thankfully, the victims were not physically harmed and we secured justice on their behalf.”

Cavalluzzi, 58, of 150^th Street in Flushing, was convicted in August of nine counts of attempted murder in the second degree, nine counts of attempted assault in the first degree, seven counts of menacing in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree and reckless driving. Queens Supreme Court Justice Michelle A. Johnson sentenced Cavalluzzi to 14 years in prison to be followed by five years post-release supervision.

According to the charges and trial testimony:

• On June 2, 2020, at approximately 3:45 p.m., at the intersection of the Cross Island Parkway service road and Clintonville Street in Whitestone, a group of peaceful demonstrators hung up signs and posters in support of Black Lives Matter.
• When Cavalluzzi came upon the demonstrators while driving, he abruptly stopped his SUV across the street from them and yelled profanities and racial slurs. He told the demonstrators, “You are in the wrong neighborhood.”
• He made a U-turn and got out of the vehicle wearing four serrated blades attached to a leather glove strapped to his right arm, and chased several of the demonstrators while waving the bladed glove and screaming at them.
• Cavalluzzi re-entered his vehicle and yelled, “I will kill you,” before driving onto the sidewalk, accelerating and aiming at the demonstrators, who ran to avoid being hit.

Assistant District Attorney Alexia Campoverde, of the District Attorney’s Career Criminal Major Crimes Bureau, prosecuted the case under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Michael Whitney, Bureau Chief, and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Major Crimes Shawn Clark.