Ex-manager found not guilty in viral Pizza Milano altercation

A jury on Wednesday found a pizza shop manager not guilty of assaulting a woman in his Uptown restaurant earlier this year, an altercation caught on film and circulated across social media.

Mahmut Yilmaz was acquitted of simple and aggravated assault, charges filed against him in January. The charges came after video footage of a violent altercation with 34-year-old Jade Martin went viral on social media.

The video, captured Jan. 12 inside Pizza Milano on Fifth Avenue, appeared to show Yilmaz confront Martin as she entered the restaurant. It showed him pushing Martin, throwing her to the ground, and he appeared to repeatedly slam her head on the floor. Employees intervened and pulled him off the woman.

Yilmaz was charged the day after the incident and fired later that week.

Martin had faced misdemeanor charges of defiant trespassing and disorderly conduct, both of which were dropped at a preliminary hearing in March.

Martin later suedYilmaz and the pizzeria, seeking $5 million for her injuries and other damages.

The lawsuit alleges civil battery, negligence, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress and corporate negligence. It faults the corporation for having no clear policies on, among other things, de-escalation or how to properly remove an individual from the property.

Megan Guza is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Megan at 412-380-8519, mguza@tribweb.com or via Twitter @meganguzaTrib.