[AZ] DEPUTY DAVID CATHIE-ATKINS BEING REINSTATED

...His attorney, Denis Fitzgibbons, wrote in a June 15, 2007, letter to the county that the sheriff's office improperly used domestic violence allegations against Cathie-Atkins to support the termination because former Sheriff Chris Vasquez had exonerated him of the charges. Exonerated under the sheriff's office policy means the "act occurred but was justified, lawful, and proper"...

PINAL COUNTY REINSTATES FIRED DEPUTY
East Valley Tribune, AZ
February 27, 2009 - 5:56PM

A Pinal County employee commission has tentatively rehired a sheriff's deputy fired in 2007 for illegally using a police database and amid allegations of domestic violence.

The Employee Merit Commission, which is made up of volunteers of county residents and hears discipline appeals, voted Feb. 17 to reinstate Sgt. David Cathie-Atkins. Some steps in the rehiring process still need to take place, including deciding on whether he gets back pay, said Heather Murphy, Pinal County spokeswoman.

"The county has not made a decision whether to appeal," Murphy said.

Sheriff Paul Babeu said the merit commission found county and sheriff's office policy violations pertaining to the internal affairs investigation of Cathie-Atkins and disparate treatment in his punishment.

Babeu said he has "some very severe concerns" about reinstating Cathie-Atkins and he is discussing his options with the County Attorney's Office.

"We may not have done a good job in documenting and presenting the case," Babeu said. "However, my obligation to put somebody in a uniform with a badge and a gun is a higher threshold and I have to answer to that as well."

Cathie-Atkins, who has been working for the Coolidge Police Department since January 2008, could not be reached for comment.
His attorney, Denis Fitzgibbons, wrote in a June 15, 2007, letter to the county that the sheriff's office improperly used domestic violence allegations against Cathie-Atkins to support the termination because former Sheriff Chris Vasquez had exonerated him of the charges.

Exonerated under the sheriff's office policy means the "act occurred but was justified, lawful, and proper."

Vasquez sustained allegations that Cathie-Atkins used a police database to gather information on his wife's friends, which he admitted, but the punishment of termination on those charges was inappropriate, Fitzgibbons wrote.

Besides, the sheriff's office gave another deputy "who engaged in the exact same conduct" as Cathie-Atkins only a two-day unpaid suspension.

Fitzgibbons said Friday that other deputy testified at the merit commission hearing that he got a more severe punishment for wrecking his patrol car than for using a police database for personal use.

Fitzgibbons said about eight veteran Pinal County Sheriff’s Office employees testified that the firing was too severe and not consistent with discipline meted out to other deputies.

The county also didn’t present one witness who said the discipline for Cathie-Atkins was reasonable, Fitzgibbons said.

"Sgt. Cathie-Atkins is prepared to accept reasonable discipline for his mistake, but under the circumstances, termination is not reasonable," Fitzgibbons wrote.

The Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board, which certifies police officers in the state, suspended Cathie-Atkins' certification for six months after his firing, according to POST records.

All of the allegations stem from what his wife called a "troubled, argumentative and violent relationship," county documents state.

Casa Grande police investigated two incidents involving the couple.

Diana Atkins accused her husband in December 2006 of trying to run her off the road, an allegation he denied and investigators couldn't prove either way.

Investigators found the husband to be the victim in a physical fight between them in November 2006.

Documents in Cathie-Atkins' personnel file say that his wife was charged in that case, but the Tribune could find no criminal court cases under Diana Atkins' name in a database that includes most courts in the state.

During the sheriff's office internal affairs investigation in which he was compelled to answer all questions, Cathie-Atkins admitted that he used police databases to look up names, addresses and the types of reports taken on his wife's friends.

He had dispatchers obtain mug shots of the people he was looking up from the Motor Vehicle Department.

"He stated that he knew it was wrong to obtain the records for his personal use, but had done it anyway," an IA investigator wrote.

Cathie-Atkins also said he monitored his wife's phone with a GPS tracking system, installed a computer program that logged her keystrokes, made 100 calls to her in one night while on duty and broke into their house after he moved out.

In an April 2007 memo to Vasquez from Capt. J.B. Karns, the captain described how a disciplinary review panel came to the conclusion that Cathie-Atkins should be fired.

"After discussion of the totality of the circumstances and the apparent 'stalking' type behavior, the history of the relationship, along with the sustained charges, the panel came to a unified recommendation," Karns wrote. "Unanimously, the panel recommends TERMINATION."

Fitzgibbons argued that the panel violated policy by looking at the "totality of the circumstances" and should have only considered the sustained charges.

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/136052

[FL] "THIS IS ERICA, I AM AT MY HOUSE. I AM SCARED, AND I NEED HELP."

...[The Live Oak Police Department victim's advocate Erica] Elliott testified that she was not seeking help when she called [Chief Buddy] Williams... Elliott said the altercation occurred because she provoked [Sgt. Jose Alfredo] Moreno... Elliott denied telling Williams or [LOPD Captain Joe] Daly that Moreno tried to choke her with the radio cord. Moreno also testified he did not try to choke Elliott with the radio cord. He said was attempting to take the cord out of her hand when he lost his grip and fell... He said that he placed his hands on Elliott's shoulders in order to move her out of the way to get out of the bathroom. The floor was slippery and she slipped and fell... [Circuit Judge Thomas] Kennon found that "Moreno physically assaulted Elliot" and that "[t]his conduct also violated LOPD Administrative Rules and City policies warranting Moreno's termination"... Moreno, terminated from the Live Oak Police Department on Sept. 22, will be briefly reinstated "to permit him to resign..."



A CHRONOLOGY:
OCT 7, 2008 - FEB 24TH, 2009

LOPD OFFICER FIRED
Sergeant dismissed after altercation with co-worker
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
October 07, 2008
[Excerpts] A sergeant with the Live Oak Police Department has been fired after an off-duty altercation with another LOPD employee in August, records of a city investigation show. Sgt. Jose Alfredo Moreno and another employee had gone to dinner on Aug. 16 and returned to the employee's residence... Moreno had reportedly become intoxicated. The two then had a verbal confrontation that turned physical. The victim made several attempts to get help, but Moreno prevented her from doing so... Moreno allegedly pulled the microphone cord from the police radio in his squad car when the victim tried to radio for help. At one point the victim tried to run and Moreno reportedly prevented her. ... Investigators determined that Moreno had violated city policy regarding conduct and ethics and determined that there was sufficient cause for his dismissal, say reports. Moreno was terminated on Sept. 22. The state attorney's office conducted a criminal investigation into the matter on Sept. 18. As a result of the investigation Moreno will be charged with criminal mischief and disorderly conduct, according to records of the LOPD investigation... In a letter to City Attorney Erny Sellers, [Mayor Sonny] Nobles said he had been asked by a city councilman whether the hearing involving Moreno "could be held 'behind closed doors' and out of the sunshine." Under Florida's Government in the Sunshine law, "the appeal cannot be heard behind closed doors," Sellers wrote in response. [Full article here]



FORMER LOPD OFFICER APPEALS FIRING
Terminated after off-duty altercation
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
October 16, 2008 05:25 pm
[Excerpts] The city council on Tuesday granted a former Live Oak Police Department officer a hearing to appeal his termination. Former Sgt. Jose Alfredo Moreno will meet before a hearing officer in the absence of the city council to make his case. The hearing officer will then make a recommendation to the council, which will ultimately determine Moreno's employment status. The meeting will take place at city hall sometime in November... LOPD officials launched an internal investigation on Aug. 26 and determined that Moreno violated city policy regarding conduct and ethics and found that there was sufficient cause for his dismissal. The State Attorney's office has also conducted a criminal investigation into the matter. It is unknown whether charges will be filed against Moreno. [Full article here]

FIRED LOPD OFFICER WON'T FACE CHARGES
Appeal hearing rescheduled
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
November 17, 2008 06:29 pm
[Excerpts] A former Live Oak police sergeant WILL NOT face criminal charges for an off-duty altercation that cost him his job. Instead, former LOPD Sgt. Jose Alfredo Moreno will participate in a pre-trial intervention program for first-time offenders. Assistant State Attorney Ernie Page said Monday he had been advised by Moreno's attorney that the former officer has signed a contract to participate in the program... [Full article here]

FIRED LOPD OFFICER WILL BE ALLOWED TO RESIGN
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
December 16, 2008 04:30 pm
[Excerpts] A former city police sergeant, fired after an off-duty altercation with another employee, will instead be allowed to resign, the city council decided Monday. Former Sgt. Jose Alfredo Moreno, terminated from the Live Oak Police Department on Sept. 22, will be briefly reinstated "to permit him to resign," according to a letter detailing the agreement. Moreno had planned to appeal his termination. Councilman Bennie Thomas objected to the arrangement. "If he wasn't doing his job. If he violated city policy and he was terminated, then that's it," Thomas said at Monday's meeting. "I have a problem with hiring him back and saying, okay, we're going to give you a chance to resign." "It's not that we'd hire him back, it's just we'd accept his letter of resignation," said Police Chief Buddy Williams. The measure was approved by a 2-1 vote, with Thomas the only dissenting voice. Councilmen John Hale and Ken Duce were absent due to health concerns. In exchange for being allowed to resign, Moreno waived his right to appeal or to pursue any other cause of action against the city... [Full article here]

POLICE OFFICER WILL APPEAL TERMINATION AFTER ALL
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
January 14, 2009
[Excerpts] A former Live Oak police officer will appeal his termination after all... Last month the city council agreed to let Moreno resign, but now he has changed his mind. Moreno is scheduled to appear before a hearing officer Jan. 20.... [Full article here]

FIRED OFFICER'S GIRLFRIEND DISPUTES ACCOUNTS OF ALTERCATION
Denies telling police chief, captain that Jose Alfredo Moreno tried to choke her
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
January 21, 2009 03:02 pm
[Excerpts] The girlfriend of Live Oak police Sgt. Jose Alfredo Moreno disputed police officials' accounts of an August 2008 altercation that led to Moreno's firing during a reinstatement hearing at police headquarters Tuesday. Moreno was terminated from LOPD last September after an off-duty altercation with the woman, Erica Elliott, also an LOPD employee... The report alleges that Moreno "pushed" Elliott in the bathroom and at one point had her in a "headlock." During the incident Elliott tried to call for help but Moreno prevented her from doing so, the report states. She later tried to run from Moreno but he pulled her back, according to the report. LOPD Captain Joe Daly testified Tuesday that Elliott was "physically distraught" and "shaken" after the incident. "When I got there Erica was crying profusely," Chief Buddy Williams said, adding her hair was "frazzled." Daly testified that Moreno had taken Elliott's cell phone and damaged it, and when she tried to use Moreno's police radio to call for help he ripped it out of the car. Both Williams and Daly testified that Elliott told them Moreno tried to choke her with the radio cord. At the hearing, Elliott denied telling Williams or Daly that Moreno tried to choke her with the radio cord. Moreno also testified he did not try to choke Elliott with the radio cord. He said was attempting to take the cord out of her hand when he lost his grip and fell. Rob Larkin, the city's labor law attorney, said during opening statements that Elliott was "very distraught" and "hysterical" when she called Williams after Moreno left her home that night. Elliott testified Tuesday that she was not seeking help when she called Williams, but rather wanted Williams to give Moreno a ride home, as he had been drinking. "I wasn't afraid he was going to hurt me," she said. Elliott said the altercation occurred because she provoked Moreno by trying to bite him, shove him and call him names. Moreno testified that Elliott hid his keys because she didn't want him to drive. Moreno said he took Elliott's cell phone to get his keys back. "I just wanted my car keys to go home," he said. He said that he placed his hands on Elliott's shoulders in order to move her out of the way to get out of the bathroom. The floor was slippery and she slipped and fell, he said. "I never pushed her with my hands and arms," he testified. Elliott said there were inaccuracies in investigative reports of the incident because of facts that she omitted during interviews. "My focus was on Mr. Moreno, not my actions," she said. "There was no indication of domestic violence," Moreno's attorney, Rick Schutte, said during his opening statement. Schutte described the incident as a "normal husband and wife, boyfriend and girlfriend spat"... [Full article here]

HEARING OFFICER: MORENO SHOULD STAY FIRED
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
February 20, 2009 09:29 am
[Excerpts] A fired Live Oak police sergeant should not be given his job back, according to the special magistrate who presided over his reinstatement hearing. The recommendation not to reverse the Sept. 22, 2008 termination of former LOPD Sgt. Jose Alfredo Moreno was issued Wednesday by retired Circuit Judge Thomas Kennon. The Live Oak City Council will decide the matter Tuesday... Kennon found that "Moreno physically assaulted Elliot" and that "[t]his conduct also violated LOPD Administrative Rules and City policies warranting Moreno's termination." Moreno "was a Sergeant in the LOPD, which is a position of great public trust," Kennon wrote in a 17-page decision. "There is a public expectation and the City of Live Oak Police Department has a right to insist that those who enforce the laws must themselves obey the laws they have sworn to enforce. It is implicit in this expectation that the police officers who are charged with protecting the citizens of the City will not participate in violent confrontations. Given Moreno's rank and the extreme nature of his violation of City policy, termination is appropriate."... [Full article here]

MORENO APPEAL REJECTED, 5-0
Suwannee Democrat, FL
By Vanessa Fultz
February 24, 2009 05:51 pm
[Excerpts] The city council voted unanimously at a 4 p.m. meeting today to reject the appeal of Live Oak Police Sgt. Jose Alfredo Moreno, terminated last September after an off-duty altercation with his girlfriend and coworker Erica Elliott, the Live Oak Police Department victim's advocate... [Full article here]

POLICE OFFICER FIRED FOR GOOD
WCTV, FL
Lanetra Bennett lanetra.bennett@wctv.tv
2/24/2009
[Excerpts] A Live Oak police sergeant will remain off the force after being fired for trying to choke his girlfriend. It didn't take the Live Oak City Council long at all. In less than two minutes Tuesday night, a unanimous vote was taken to uphold the termination of SGT Jose Alfredo Moreno from the Live Oak Police Department... A hearing report shows on August 16th, the couple drove to Gainesville for dinner, where Moreno had eight to ten beers and got drunk. The report says the two carried an argument back to Elliot's home in Live Oak, and when she tried to stop Moreno from driving home, he grabbed her around the neck and pushed her away, causing her to fall into the bathtub. Live Oak Police Chief Buddy Williams said... The report goes on to say that Elliot used Moreno's police radio to exclaim, "This is Erica, I am at my house. I am scared, and I need help." She testified that Moreno fell trying to take the radio and choked her with the cord. Elliot, who's the victim advocate, still works for the department. Neither Moreno nor his attorney was present at Tuesday's meeting... [Full article here]
[POLICE OFFICER INVOLVED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE RECANT RECANTED]

[GA] Sheriff's Office disputes they were warned about danger at Deputy Deleston's

It's been one year.

...Dominique Ross, the father of Deputy Joy Deleston’s slain 11-year-old daughter Micaiah] said he also contacted Deleston’s supervisor at the Sheriff’s Department multiple times, but his complaints were dismissed. “It was brushed under the rug, and then this incident happened, which could have been prevented”...

Previous post:

[GA] Deputy Joy Deleston & daughters slain by son

SLAIN DEPUTY’S FAMILY TORN AS JUSTICE SOUGHT

Joy Deleston and her two daughters were gunned down on Feb. 28, 2008, and the person accused of those crimes is her teenage son. But some loved ones believe he didn’t do it.
Atlanta Journal Constitution, USA
By Andria Simmons
Saturday, February 28, 2009
[Excerpts] A year after the slayings of a Gwinnett County sheriff’s deputy and her two daughters, family members are torn between seeking justice for the victims and mercy for the alleged killer, the deputy’s teenage son. Anthony Tyrone Terrell Jr., now 18, is accused of gunning down his mother and his two half-sisters at their Lawrenceville home on Feb. 28, 2008. The motive remains unclear, but prosecutors said Deputy Joy Deleston had argued with her son earlier that day about having a girlfriend inside their house without supervision. Terrell is expected to go on trial this spring if he doesn’t enter a guilty plea. If convicted on all three murder charges, Terrell could serve three back-to-back life sentences... Dominique Ross, the father of Deleston’s slain 11-year-old daughter Micaiah, believes Terrell is guilty and he should never get out of prison. Terrell and his mother had fought several times prior to the shooting because Terrell swiped her personal revolver, Ross said. “He had taken it on different occasions and was riding around with friends trying to be tough,” Ross said. Ross says Deleston blew off his concerns when he tried to talk to her about restricting Anthony’s access to the gun. He said he also contacted Deleston’s supervisor at the Sheriff’s Department multiple times, but his complaints were dismissed. “It was brushed under the rug, and then this incident happened, which could have been prevented,” said Ross. A Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman disputed the accusation. “A statement like that is something we would take very seriously and we would have followed up on,” said Stacey Bourbonnais... The rapper Juvenile, whose real name is Terius Gray, fathered Deleston’s 4-year-old daughter, Jelani, He declined through his attorney to discuss the killings on Thursday, saying “it remains a private matter.” A memorial service was held Friday for Deleston in front of the Gwinnett County Detention Center... [Full article here]

[WI] Officer Kessler quits before department investigates his domestic

...The conviction would be Kessler’s second for a domestic-related incident... No internal investigation had been done, and none will be now that Kessler is no longer a city employee...

Previous post:
[WI] AGAIN Officer Kessler is in trouble for domestic violence - ...described as a weekend-long argument that escalated from name-calling to physical abuse. The alleged victim, Kessler's girlfriend and the mother of his young child, reportedly recanted... Prosecutors relied on her initial statements... In 2004, Kessler was charged for pointing his duty handgun at his then-girlfriend's head...

POLICE OFFICER QUITS AFTER CHARGES FILED
Kenosha News
BY JESSICA STEPHEN
jstephen@kenoshanews.com
February 18, 2009
[Excerpts] Minutes after criminal charges were filed Tuesday against a Kenosha police officer accused of domestic violence, he resigned from the police department. Kurtiss J. Kessler, 35, of Kenosha, was charged with misdemeanors for alleged disorderly conduct and battery, both related to domestic abuse. If convicted, he faces one year in jail. The conviction would be Kessler’s second for a domestic-related incident. In a sign that he may not challenge the charges, Kessler’s lawyer asked for a plea hearing... Kessler is set to enter pleas March 17 before Kenosha County Circuit Judge Wilbur W. Warren III. Sentencing could happen that same day... Kessler, a Kenosha police officer for more than 11 years, was suspended without pay from the police department after he was arrested Feb. 9 for allegedly pushing his girlfriend, pulling her hair and hitting her with a shoe... No internal investigation had been done, and none will be now that Kessler is no longer a city employee... The criminal complaint filed Tuesday alleges that an argument between Kessler and his girlfriend, the mother of his nearly 2-year-old son, turned violent... The woman told sheriff’s deputies that she wanted to report the incident, but she did not want Kessler to lose his job. Prosecutors said she has considered recanting her statement. Kessler has a previous conviction for a 2003 domestic-related incident. He was accused of pointing a gun at his then-girlfriend’s head. Kessler pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors. He served three days in jail, paid a fine and had two years probation. He also was suspended from the police department for 55 days without pay, but allowed to return to work. [Full article here]
[police officer involved domestic violence]

[IN] Officer Paciorkowski's felony domestic battery reduced to misdemeanor

...There were reportedly five children inside the home at the time...

Previous post:
June 25, 2008 - [IN] Police Cpl. Paciorkowski - FELONY domestic BATTERY & INTERFERENCE charges

ELKHART OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY TO BATTERY
By TOM MOO
Feb 26, 2009 at 6:30 PM EST
[Excerpts] An Elkhart police officer will resign from the department as part of a plea agreement after he pled guilty this week to a lesser charge of battery, according to court records. Christopher A. Paciorkowski, 40, pled guilty in Elkhart Superior Court 1 to Class A misdemeanor battery, stemming from a June 25 altercation with a woman. Paciorkowski will be sentenced on March 9. A charge of Class D felony domestic battery was reduced to a misdemeanor, while a charge of interference with reporting a crime, a Class A misdemeanor, was dropped in exchange for the guilty plea... The argument turned physical when Paciorkowski allegedly grabbed her in a “rear bear hug and pinned her on her left side” in an attempt to retrieve her phone... The woman, who reportedly threw an engagement ring and watch at the officer, reported pain and discomfort and had red marks on her arm, said county police spokesman Trevor Wendzonka, although it is unclear whether she went to the hospital... There were reportedly five children inside the home at the time... [Full article here]

[WA] Deputy Carey's dv arrest: "Just book me bro..."

Why deputy’s girlfriend called 911 on him
News Tribune
brian.everstine@thenewstribune.com
02/27/09 12:05 am
[Excerpts] The arrest of a Pierce County sheriff’s deputy on suspicion of domestic violence last week came after his girlfriend dialed 911 and told operators she thought he was going to kill her, court records show.
Bonney Lake police arrived at a house on Church Lake Drive to find a frantic woman, blood spots, moved furniture and a sheriff’s patrol car, according to the documents, released Thursday. The deputy, Mario Carey, 37, was charged Wednesday with fourth-degree domestic violence assault... The woman told officers that Carey had been abusive before and had hit her in the nose, the documents state. She asked officers to “rough him up” but not arrest him, because he was part of the law enforcement “brotherhood,” the documents state. Officers said she changed her account several times, saying she never should have called police and that she didn’t want to “incriminate her man any further.” Officers arrested Carey, and a sheriff’s sergeant came to take Carey’s patrol car and weapons from the residence. When officers told Carey he was under arrest, according to the documents, he replied, “Fine. Just book me, bro. I know you have to do your job”... The department will conduct an internal investigation. [Full article here]

[CA] UNNAMED CHP OFFICER (JOHNSON) SHOT & KILLED HER HUSBAND MARCUS LAVAR LEMONS

Marcus Lavar Lemons

...The CHP officer, who was not identified, called authorities at 11:07 p.m. Saturday and said she'd shot her husband in the upper torso in the 400 block of Amantha Avenue after he became "verbally and physically combative... Family members and friends of Marcus Lemons say they do not believe he was an abusive person... Lemons worked as a barber at Platinum Cutz in Compton. Co-workers have placed yellow friendship roses and candles at Lemons' barber chair...

Though the news has not named her, some videos have mentioned her name and people commenting on forums have named her, with various spellings, i.e., "Her name is tomekia johnson..."

I found this on the web and called to double check the information. It is correct.
FUND RAISER FOR THE LEMONS FAMILY.
Saturday February 28, 2009
10:00am (Check in at 9:00am)
Cal Bowling Lanes
2500 Carson Street
Lakewood, CA 90712
(562) 421-8448
Cost:$25.00 per person
Tournament Style: NO TAP
Raffles and Prizes
All proceeds collected will be donated to the Lemons Family!
Hosted by: Naisha Waite and David "Jello" Gray
MAP



CHP OFFICER SHOOTS HUSBAND
NEW BRIEFS
L.A. Watts Times (subscription) - ?2 hours ago?
Feb 25th, 2009
[Excerpts] A California Highway Patrol officer has shot and killed her husband in Compton, according to authorities. Sheriff's Deputy Richard Li said the shooting was reported late the evening of Feb. 21. Li said the woman shot her husband once in the upper body after he became "verbally and physically combative." Marcus Lavar Lemons, 31, was pronounced dead at the scene. Relatives and friends have reportedly stated that Lemons was not a violent man... The CHP officer's name has not been released and she remains free... [Full article here]



CHP OFFICER FREE PENDING INVESTIGATION INTO HUSBAND'S SHOOTING
MyFox Los Angeles
Feb 23, 2009
[Excerpts] Compton (myFOXla.com) - A California Highway Patrol officer who fatally shot her husband in Compton, saying he had abused her, remains free pending the outcome of an investigation. Marcus Lavar Lemons, 31, died in the shooting... The officer reported fatally shooting her husband in the upper body at 11:07 p.m. Saturday at an address in the 400 block of Amantha Avenue... [Full article here]



DEPUTIES: CHP PATROL OFFICER SHOOTS, KILLS HUSBAND
By John Cadiz Klemack
NBCLosAngeles.com
updated 2:46 p.m. PT, Wed., Feb. 25, 2009
[Excerpts] A California Highway Patrol officer fatally shot her husband in Compton, saying he had abused her, said sheriff's deputies.
The CHP officer, who was not identified, called authorities at 11:07 p.m. Saturday and said she'd shot her husband in the upper torso in the 400 block of Amantha Avenue after he became "verbally and physically combative," said sheriff's Deputy Rick Pedroza.... One homicide detective working the case said the off-duty officer shot her husband near Central Avenue and the 91 Freeway before driving into the residential area and calling authorities. Family members and friends of Marcus Lemons say they do not believe he was an abusive person... Lemons worked as a barber at Platinum Cutz in Compton. Co-workers have placed yellow friendship roses and candles at Lemons' barber chair. "It's hard for me to believe it at all," said owner Randy Brown. "He was like a brother to me. He never would've done this. I've seen him get upset over little things here and never lashes out. He could never do that to his wife." Brown said Lemons was married to his officer-wife for about five years and that they shared a two-year-old daughter. That's in addition to Lemons' 13-year-old son from a previous relationship... [Full article here]

CHP OFFICER KILLS HER HUSBAND
Daily Breeze
From wire service reports
02/23/2009 06:37:19 AM PST
[Excerpts] ...The couple ate at a T.G.I. Fridays, then went to a Carl's Jr. and got into an argument and fight, KCAL9 reported. KCAL spoke to the slain man's 13-year-old son, Demarco Lemons. He said he used to bowl with his father "and sometimes he'd train me to be better at football." Darian Milow, the man's former fiancee, questioned Lemons' aggressiveness. "We were together for [10] years, and he's never touched me in any way; so for them to portray him as this monster is unbelievable," Darian Milow told Channel 9. A friend seconded that opinion. "He would never hurt anybody. Nobody. Nobody. It's not him. It's not," Crystal Barhee told the station... [Full article here]
[police officer involved domestic violence oidv intimate partner violence (IPV) abuse law enforcement public safety fatality fatalities california state female TAMEEKA TAMIKA]

[CT] If you want to date Wilton Police Officer Andrew Barone it would be good to watch this case

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

[OH] Former Police Chief Osiecki AND FAMILY standing in the need of prayer - and an immediate plan

...[Former police chief Robert] Osiecki, 51, is currently serving a 25-day jail sentence that began Feb. 12 after pleading no contest to one count of handling a weapon while intoxicated in connection with a four-hour standoff that took place at his township home back in November...

The cloud is dark and low. Time is important.

Previous post:
[OH] Police Chief Osiecki's armed standoff after he read the news - ...Earlier in the day, several officers had gone to [Brunswick Hills Police Chief Robert] Osiecki's home to reassure him after an article appeared in a local newspaper Thursday. The article stated that next week he would be disciplined or fired for an October incident in which he allegedly was intoxicated and pointed a gun at a relative inside his home... Area police chiefs who know Chief Osiecki were on scene to help with negotiations... Osiecki also made several demands... Township police did not have a report on the incident...
LATEST:

HILLS' ACTING POLICE CHIEF RESIGNS; NEW ONE NAMED
Brunswick Sun Times
By Melissa Martin mmartin@sunnews.com
Thursday, February 26, 2009
[Excerpts] Amid ongoing discussions to determine whether the [Brunswick Hills] township will retain its own police force or contract services with the Medina County Sheriff's Department, trustees have appointed a new acting police chief. Sgt. Steve Klopfenstein has assumed the duties of acting chief following the Feb. 13 resignation of acting police chief Lt. Deano McNeil. McNeil, a 21-year veteran of the township police force, served as the department's acting chief since Oct. 31, the day former police chief Robert Osiecki was suspended from the department... Osiecki, 51, is currently serving a 25-day jail sentence that began Feb. 12 after pleading no contest to one count of handling a weapon while intoxicated in connection with a four-hour standoff that took place at his township home back in November. In connection with a separate incident during which he brandished a gun at his home during an Oct. 29 domestic incident, trustees fired the former chief Dec. 19 on grounds of misfeasance, malfeasance, neglect of duty and misconduct in office. Osiecki has since filed an appeal of the decision in Medina County Court of Common Pleas. Because he failed to file a written notice of the appeal with the board of trustees within 10 days as required by law, however, trustees and their attorney, county prosecutor Dean Holman, have filed a motion with the court to have the appeal dismissed... [Full article here]

Since the last post:

...The charge that was dismissed by the board claimed that during the Oct. 29 incident, Osiecki threatened to kill himself...

BRUNSWICK HILLS TRUSTEES TO INVESTIGATE POLICE DEPARTMENT FOLLOWING FIRING OF CHIEF OSIECKI
The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com
Posted by Melissa Martin
December 25, 2008 08:30AM
Trustees say the Brunswick Hills Township police department will be placed under careful scrutiny in light of facts that were exposed during last-week's quasi-judicial hearing that resulted in the termination of longtime police chief Robert Osiecki. Trustee Kathleen Scheutzow said the board will conduct a close examination of police department operations now that details have emerged suggesting that officers in the township police department may have violated their own departmental rules and operations. Along with inter-departmental cover-ups related to the Osiecki case, trustees say they will be investigating the remaining officer with regard to additional acts of misconduct in office... During Friday's disciplinary hearing, trustees laid out the groundwork for seven charges that were brought against Osiecki, whose termination became effective Friday. Five of those charges stem from an incident that took place inside his Lonetree Court residence on the evening of Oct. 29... The charge that was dismissed by the board claimed that during the Oct. 29 incident, Osiecki threatened to kill himself... [Full article here]

...He was fired Dec. 19. No charges were ever filed. A month earlier, Osiecki had a weapon in his home as county SWAT units camped outside the house on Lonetree Court...

BRUNSWICK HILLS POLICE CHIEF ROBERT OSIECKI TRYING TO GET JOB BACK
The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com
Posted by John Caniglia
January 23, 2009
Ousted Police Chief Robert Osiecki is fighting to get his job back after his series of personal and professional troubles prompted the township trustees to consider disbanding the department. Osiecki, 51, pleaded no contest this month to possessing a weapon while intoxicated following a four-hour standoff Nov. 20. In December, he was fired from the job he has held since 1993 for a separate drunken, gun-wielding incident in October. He has filed a notice of appeal of the firing in Medina County Common Pleas Court... [His attorney, Stephen] Brown called the gun incidents aberrations for Osiecki, saying "that's not him. It was out of character."... The trustees placed him on administrative leave Oct. 31, two days after he wielded a gun during a domestic dispute at his home. The trustees said he was drunk at the time. He was fired Dec. 19. No charges were ever filed. A month earlier, Osiecki had a weapon in his home as county SWAT units camped outside the house on Lonetree Court. Stemming from that incident, he pleaded no contest last week to possessing a gun while under the influence. The crime carries a maximum sentence of six months in jail, but, in an agreement with prosecutors, Osiecki is expected to be sentenced to probation for three years. A key point of the agreement is that he cannot use or possess weapons, a move that could end his career as a police officer. A sentencing date has not been set. Brown said Medina Municipal Judge Dale Chase would decide the sentence, and he could allow Osiecki to continue to carry a gun and keep working... [Full article here]
[police officer involved domestic violence, ohio politics, oh politics]

[NC] Supreme Court ruling may effect dead Patsy Bradley's ex-police chief husband

Patricia Tinsley Bradley
1964-2005

...Patsy Bradley was found dead in her home about a month after the assault....

MySpace page:
"JUSTICE FOR PATSY TINSLEY BRADLEY"

...In their September motion to dismiss the firearms charge, prosecutors cited a ruling by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals that cast doubt on whether Bradley could be prosecuted. But the department said in the motion it would refile the charge against Bradley should the Supreme Court overturn the Appeals Court ruling, which it did on Tuesday...

Previous entries:

• [NC] Another suicide that won't die. Patsy Tinsley Bradley - Patsy was a very giving and loving lady who was always willing to help others and did so many times. She loved to make people laugh and smile. She worked Santa Pal many years, worked at West Asheville Police Resource Center and volunteered many other places... She was and is dearly loved by all who know her...
• [NC] Ex-police chief husband of (slain?) Patsy Tinsley Bradley arrested by U.S. Marshals - Patsy Tinsley's husband, ex-police chief Pete Bradley was arrested by U.S. Marshals on undisclosed federal charges.
• [NC] Ex-chief Bradley let out of jail after fainting - ...A prosecutor told jurors at Bradley’s assault trial that Bradley told officers investigating [Patsy's] death: “I guess she won’t be testifying against me”... Bradley would have had his initial hearing Tuesday but passed out before he was brought into court...
  

COURT RULING COULD REVIVE GUN CHARGE
Bradley case may resurface
Asheville Citizen-Times
Clarke Morrison
February 26, 2009 12:15 am
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling involving a domestic violence case could pave the way for prosecutors to once again charge former Woodfin Police Chief Pete Bradley with illegally possessing a gun. The decision this week also could have broad impact on domestic violence cases, victims' advocates said Wednesday. The court in its 7-2 ruling found state laws against battery don't have to specifically mention domestic violence to fall under a domestic violence gun ban enacted in 1996. The U.S. Justice Department in September dropped a felony firearms charge against Bradley that had been filed under the 1996 law. In their September motion to dismiss the firearms charge, prosecutors cited a ruling by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals that cast doubt on whether Bradley could be prosecuted. But the department said in the motion it would refile the charge against Bradley should the Supreme Court overturn the Appeals Court ruling, which it did on Tuesday... The indictment on the gun possession charge, filed in U.S. District Court in Asheville, said the career law enforcement officer was found with a .45-caliber Sig Sauer handgun on April 2. Bradley was convicted in March 2007 of assaulting his wife in their Biltmore Forest home, about a month before Patsy Bradley died of what officials deemed suicide. The 1996 law bans possession of firearms by anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. Other laws forbid felons from possessing firearms. In dismissing the charge against Bradley, prosecutors cited the Appeals Court ruling that the underlying misdemeanor crime must have, as an element, a domestic relationship. Bradley was convicted of assault on a female, a North Carolina crime "that does not contain as an element that there be a domestic relationship, although that fact is present in the underlying case," the department said in its motion to dismiss. But in striking down the Appeals Court ruling in a case from West Virginia, the Supreme Court said state laws don't have to specifically mention domestic violence to fall under the gun ban. It is enough, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote in her majority opinion, that the victim of such a crime be involved in a domestic relationship with the attacker... In the assault case against Bradley, prosecutors said at his trial that he struck his wife in the head during the early morning hours of Aug. 31, 2005, leaving a lump the size of a golf ball. Officers said they found Patsy Bradley scared and crying in her car at a neighbor's house. Bradley was sentenced in Buncombe County Superior Court to 30 days in jail after a jury found him guilty. Patsy Bradley was found dead in her home about a month after the assault. The State Bureau of Investigation launched an investigation, and an autopsy report released later by the N.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner called her death a suicide prompted by depression and a troubled marriage. A prosecutor told jurors at Bradley's assault trial that Bradley told officers investigating the death, "I guess she won't be testifying against me." Bradley testified he didn't strike his wife... [Full article here]
[police officer involved domestic violence, u.s. politics, north carolina politics, gun ban, fatality, falities, suicide, murder, unsolved or unresolved]

[WA] Deputy Carey arrested for domestic violence

Deputy charged in domestic violence incident with girlfriend
The News Tribune
Brian Everstine
02/26/09
[Excerpts] A Pierce County sheriff's deputy was charged with domestic violence Wednesday after an argument with his girlfriend. Mario Carey, 37, was charged with fourth-degree domestic violence, a misdemeanor, in Bonney Lake Municipal Court... [Bonney Lake] Officers interviewed the two and found probable cause to arrest the deputy... Carey, an eight-year veteran of the Sheriff's Department, was placed on paid administrative leave and, following standard procedure, his weapon was confiscated, sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said. The Sheriff's Department will conduct an internal investigation of the incident, Troyer said. LINK
[police officer involved domestic violence]

[VA] Amber Smith and her deputy husband arrested

DEPUTY AND WIFE ARRESTED OVER DOMESTIC DISPUTE
Daily Press
By DAVID MACAULAY 247-7838
February 23, 2009
A deputy with Newport News Sheriff's Office and his wife have been charged with assault and battery after a domestic dispute at their home, police say. Police officers were called out to a home in Linden Avenue at 1:27 a.m. Sunday, after a caller informed them of a dispute between William B. Smith, a 29-year-old deputy, and his wife Amber M. Smith, 26, police spokesman Holly McPherson said. "Mr. and Mrs. Smith were involved in a verbal altercation which led to both individuals using their hands to assault one another. Both parties had very minor injuries. No medic was required," McPherson said. The Smiths were arrested and each was charged with one count of assault and battery... [Full article here]
[police officer involved domestic violence, oidv]

[MA] The sky is falling for Officer Martinez - guilty or not

I prepared excerpts about the child rape/ incest charges against Springfield Officer Pedro Martinez but sexual charges involving children are so sad and so devastating to every soul involved or connected that the details seems like too much information. A picture of him here would be too much. The allegations, whether they are true or false - carry a different darkness and weight. Too dark, too heavy for me to post. Maybe the lighter side is that if these horrific crimes did happened, that hopefully there is healing that is about to happen for one young girl.
Praying for all.

[NC] Officer Caruana arrested for domestic gun-pointing threats, assault

...[Raleigh Police Officer Andrew] Caruana is charged with assault, assault by pointing a gun and communicating threats... It was Caruana's wife who reported the assault at the apartment complex, according to the police report. Another Raleigh man was listed as a victim...

NC OFFICER FACES ASSAULT CHARGES FROM INCIDENT
The Associated Press
Posted: Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009
RALEIGH, N.C. An officer assigned to the Raleigh Police Department's gang unit has been arrested on assault charges. Department spokesman Jim Sughrue (shuh-GROO') said Wednesday that Ofc. Andrew R. Caruana (care-uh-AH'-nah) was taken into custody after the incident, which occurred while he was off duty. Officers responded to a residence about a disturbance Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. Caruana is charged with assault, assault by pointing a gun and communicating threats. Caruana's department-issued weapon was not used in the incident. The 32-year-old was taken into custody Tuesday night and released a short time later. His bail amount was unknown... [Full article here]

DISTURBANCE LEADS TO RALEIGH COP'S ARREST
A.R. Caruana, officer charged in domestic case
WRAL
Adam Owens
Feb. 25, 2009
[Excerpts] Raleigh police responding to a disturbance call arrested an off-duty fellow officer Tuesday and charged him with assault. At about 9:30 a.m., officers answered a call about a domestic-related disturbance in the 10000 block of Heather Meadow Lane at the Columns at Wakefield upscale apartment complex. As a result of the investigation, Officer A.R. Caruana, 32, was taken into custody, they said. He was charged with assault, assault by pointing a gun and communicating threats and was transported to the Wake County jail... It was Caruana's wife who reported the assault at the apartment complex, according to the police report. Another Raleigh man was listed as a victim... Caruana was no longer being held in the Wake County Jail and could not be reached for comment Wednesday evening. [Full article here]
[police officer involved domestic violence, politics]

[IA] Deputy Phippen arrested, charged this time

...[Pottawattamie County Sheriff Jeff] Danker said investigators have been called out to the residence before but that this is the only time charges have been filed...

POTTAWATTAMIE DEPUTY ACCUSED OF DOMESTIC ABUSE
Omaha World-Herald
Jason Kuiper
February 25, 2009
[Excerpts] A Pottawattamie County sheriff's deputy was arrested Tuesday on a warrant charging him with domestic abuse, a serious misdemeanor. Matthew Phippen, 48, turned himself in, then was released on his own recognizance. The incident that led to the charge occurred Sunday at his home in rural Treynor, Iowa. Sheriff Jeff Danker said investigators went to the home after receiving a call from Phippen's wife saying he had shoved her during an argument. Danker said she complained of pain but did not require treatment... Danker said investigators have been called out to the residence before but that this is the only time charges have been filed. If convicted, Phippen would no longer be allowed to possess a weapon, so he could lose his job. If convicted he could get anywhere from probation to a year in jail... [Full article here]

DEPUTY ARRESTED FOR DOMESTIC ABUSE TUESDAY
SW Iowa News
Chad Nation cnation@nonpareilonline.com
02/25/2009
[Excerpts] ..."The investigator interviewed both parties, we discussed it with the County Attorney's Office and a warrant was issued," Danker said. Danker said the wife had a complaint of pain, but did not require medical treatment. However, because of the complaint of pain, Phippen was charged with serious misdemeanor domestic abuse. If convicted he would be barred from possessing weapons. "If there is a conviction, it would be tough to keep him hired," Danker said. The charge also carries a possible sentence of a year in jail or as little as probation... Danker said Phippen has been placed on administrative leave. [Full article here]
[iowa politics, officer-involved domestic violence, repeat]

[NYPD] Police Sgt. Chaparro gets 10 measly years for killing NYPD Officer Sonia Garcia

To see previous posts on this blog about Sonia go here

Myspace: NYPD Sonia Garcia, Badge #30486

Cop gets 10 years in Bay Shore fiancee's slaying
Victim Sonia Garcia, 27, was also with NYPD
Newsday
BY ERIK GERMAN erik.german@newsday.com
12:05 PM EST, February 25, 2009

A New York City police academy instructor was sentenced in Riverhead Wednesday to 10 years in prison for fatally shooting his fiancee.

Alexis Chaparro, 28, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter, a crime that carries a maximum prison term of 25 years.

Chaparro had initially been charged with second-degree murder after police found Sonia Garcia, 27, also a New York Police Department officer, shot to death in the bedroom of the couple's Bay Shore home last year.

Prosecutors said Chaparro shot his fiancee, Sonia Garcia, 28, a mother of two girls from a previous relationship and a four-year veteran of the New York Police Department, in the chest on Sept. 29, 2007. He then called 911 and told police that he had heard a shot and found her dead.

"She's shot, she's bleeding. Oh my God! Jesus!" said Chaparro on a 911 tape played in court hearings earlier this year. "I'm trying to do CPR, I'm pumping her chest. . . Just get over here, please!"

When police questioned Chaparro, he first said he had not fired his service pistol, then said he did not remember firing it, a detective said in court during hearings in the case.

Police found only 15 rounds in Chaparro's Smith & Wesson service pistol, not the 16 rounds he insisted were there. Chaparro said he hadn't shot Garcia, while still saying he and Garcia were alone in the house, detectives said.

He was indicted nearly three months after the shooting.

Chaparro's lawyer William Keahon of Islandia has said that his client only remembers falling asleep the night his fiancee was shot and killed and that he had worried about burglars entering their home in the days leading up to her death.

Garcia's family has insisted that Chaparro was abusive and the likely killer.

[LINK]

[officer-involved domestic violence, oidv, new york, ny, nyc]

[MN] The "unsupervised probation" behavior of wife-assaulting St. Paul Police Officer Scott Wendell

...Last summer Anoka County sheriff's deputies were called to [St. Paul Police Officer Scott Wendell's] home for allegedly assaulting his wife. Those charges will eventually be dismissed... He is on unsupervised probation... LeAnn Tonn said Wednesday that Wendell beat her son, Luke Prescott, 28, while he was in a holding cell at the Ramsey County jail... Prescott was never booked into the jail that evening. The incident, if it occurred, he said, would have been in a separate holding area made available to state and local law enforcement agencies...

ST. PAUL COP ALLEGEDLY BEATS UP ARRESTED SUSPECT
Officer thought suspect sold marijuana to daughter
Myfox9
Tom Lyden
Monday, 09 Feb 2009
A St. Paul police officer allegedly beat up an arrested suspect who he thought was selling marijuana to his daughter. Luke Prescott was under arrest on November 7th, 2008, when Officer Scott Wendell assaulted Prescott... Prescott was so badly injured; he was taken to the hospital rather than admitted to the jail... Wendell has allegedly had trouble with his temper before. Last summer Anoka County sheriff's deputies were called to his home for allegedly assaulting his wife. Those charges will eventually be dismissed. Wendell is a 10-year veteran of the department and has a clean internal affairs file. [Full article here]

ST. PAUL COP INVESTIGATED IN ALLEGED OFF-DUTY ASSAULT
TwinCities.com
By Mara H. Gottfried mgottfried@pioneerpress.com
Posted: 02/10/2009
A St. Paul police officer is the subject of a criminal investigation for allegedly assaulting a man while off duty... Wendell became a St. Paul police officer in 1999 and has no record of departmental disciplinary action, Panos said. He is on unsupervised probation in Anoka County, where he lives, for a misdemeanor domestic assault case. Wendell pleaded not guilty to the domestic assault charge filed in April. It was continued for dismissal on July 14 with conditions that he not commit assault, abusive behavior, terroristic threats, disorderly conduct and other offenses, according to the court register of actions. His probation ends July 14, 2009. [Full article here]

ST. PAUL OFFICER INVESTIGATED FOR ASSAULT
St. Paul police officer on desk duty as investigation into alleged assault undertaken.
Minneapolis Star Tribune, MN
Anthony Lonetree
February 11, 2009 - 11:06 PM
A St. Paul police officer is being investigated for aggravated assault after a man complained he was beaten while in police custody last November... LeAnn Tonn said Wednesday that Wendell beat her son, Luke Prescott, 28, while he was in a holding cell at the Ramsey County jail. She said Prescott told her Wendell had beaten him while he was handcuffed. Her son had to be taken to Regions Hospital in St. Paul for treatment... When she saw her son the following day, she said, he had a turban-like bandage around his head and bloody clothes. Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher, whose office runs the jail, said Prescott was never booked into the jail that evening. The incident, if it occurred, he said, would have been in a separate holding area [how special!] made available to state and local law enforcement agencies... [Full article here]
[officer-involved domestic violence, oidv, minnesota]

[TN] Judge says Officer Brown can GO HOME???

A Murfreesboro Police officer whose wife obtained a second order of protection against him will return home and attend counseling sessions with his wife after a hearing Tuesday in Circuit...

Watch below also for Brown's use of police tactics on his wife. There should be a set of special laws for using professional law enforcement tactical techniques outside of the job. And these incidents noted are only what's hit the paper. No one knows but God what Mrs. Brown has endured. Officer Brown can come home with PASTORAL counseling - one of the tricks our police chief David Brame here in Tacoma Washington tried to pressure his wife Crystal with mere weeks before he committed murder-suicide - with their children runnning to the scene.

From Crystal's Journal:
"...Chaplain Bowlby asked me to call off the divorce proceedings for 6 weeks and meet with him and David for counseling..."

Please pray for this family.

News from February 13 through February 24th, 2009:

MURFREESBORO POLICE OFFICER ACCUSED OF ASSAULTING WIFE
By: Lisa Marchesoni
Friday, February 13, 2009 2:22 pm
[Excerpts] Complaints about a Murfreesboro Police officer assaulting his wife for the second time in two years are being investigated by detectives, a sergeant reported. Officer Finess Brown, 36, was accused of assaulting his wife, Catina, during an argument Tuesday. The wife accused him of grabbing her wrist, causing her arm to be pulled behind her, Sgt. Harry Haigh reported. Their 15-year-old son tried to intervene. “I examined Ms. Brown’s wrist and did not notice any signs of injury and she stated she was not injured,” Haigh reported. Brown was charged with domestic assault of his wife in June 2007. Court records showed no documentation, indicating his record might have been erased as part of his case. He has not been charged in this week’s complaint but his wife obtained a document ordering him to stay away from her... Haigh reported Mrs. Brown told him she and her husband argued again Wednesday until she left the home with their four children. She accused Brown of stopping her and the children Thursday where he allegedly rocked the car with them inside... She called 911 and drove to the police department. West helped Mrs. Brown apply for the order of protection and to Judge Mark Rogers’ office to sign the order of protection... [Full article here]

MPD OFFICER BEING INVESTIGATED AFTER ALLEGATIONS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Officer decommissioned in 2007 under similar circumstances
The Tennessean
By Mark Bell mbell@Dnj.com
February 13, 2009
[Excerpts] A Murfreesboro Police officer is under investigation by his own department for the second time in less than two years after his wife claimed he assaulted her again. Patrolman Finess Brown, 36, could face domestic assault charges. He has not reported to work since his spouse filed a domestic violence report with the Murfreesboro Police Department on Thursday, Murfreesboro Police Maj. Clyde Adkison said... The investigation stems from events occurring between Feb. 10 and Feb. 12, according to the police report. Brown’s wife reported that on Feb. 10 she and her husband got into an argument, which led to the officer grabbing her wrist and twisting her arm behind her back. After a struggle she was able to get away from Brown, “fleeing the house in fear wearing only a T-shirt, shorts and socks,” she told police. She said she later returned to the home after Brown calmed down, and decided to slip out of the home with their three children and some clothing after Brown went to sleep. When Brown realized his wife and children were gone, his wife reported, he began calling her and threatening her over the phone, and through a text message that allegedly said he would "find (her) anywhere.” Brown again made contact with his wife while she was taking her children to school on Thursday, his wife told police. Brown saw his wife and children while they were leaving Hardees on Old Fort Parkway and signaled them to pull over. When she pulled over, Brown approached the car and she cracked the window to allow him to speak to the children. “He immediately demanded her to unlock the door,” the report states. “She refused and he began pulling on the window, causing the vehicle to rock back and forth. (Brown’s wife) stated she was afraid he was going to harm her so she did not unlock the door and drove away.” FOLLOWING THAT INCIDENT, BROWN’S SPOUSE WENT TO THE MURFREESBORO POLICE DEPARTMENT TO FILE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE REPORT. AFTER THE REPORT WAS FILED, MURFREESBORO POLICE DETECTIVE JENNIFER WEST WAS NOTIFIED. WEST HELPED BROWN’S SPOUSE OBTAIN AN EX PARTE ORDER OF PROTECTION AGAINST HIM. That order of protection had not been served as of Friday at 2:30 p.m. because Brown has not reported for work and cannot be located... Brown, who has worked for the department since July 2004, was decommissioned in June 2007 for assaulting his wife... officers reported seeing swelling on his wife’s face consistent with being struck. NO RECORDS RELATED TO THE 2007 CHARGES WERE ON FILE AT THE RUTHERFORD COUNTY JUDICIAL BUILDING ON FRIDAY. A CLERK SAID IT IS POSSIBLE HIS RECORD HAD BEEN EXPUNGED. A Daily News Journal reporter attempted to view Brown’s personnel file on Friday at MPD, but Adkison said access would not be allowed until Tuesday because certain parts of his file would “have to be redacted.” Police officers' personnel files are considered open for inspection under the state’s open records laws... [Full article here]

OFFICER ACCUSED OF DOMESTIC ASSAULT LOSES POLICE POWERS
The Tennessean, TN, Gannett Tennessee
By Mark Bell
February 18, 2009
[Excerpts] A Murfreesboro Police officer has been PLACED ON DECOMMISSIONED STATUS for the second time in less than two years following allegations of domestic violence by his wife. Patrolman Finess Brown, 36, gave up his status as a law enforcement officer after he reported to work Tuesday morning, the first time he'd been to work since the allegations arose last Thursday, according to Murfreesboro Police Maj. Clyde Adkison. Brown met with Chief Glenn Chrisman and Deputy Chief Randy Garrett and agreed to his decommission. "I concur with decommission until further notice," a note written on a decommission notice by Chief Glenn Chrisman and signed by both Chrisman and Brown reads. Brown will not be allowed to carry a firearm "onto any property owned or controlled by the City of Murfreesboro at any time," the document reads. He also will not be allowed to carry a badge, wear his police uniform or present himself as an officer of MPD. In addition, Brown "will not perform in any official law enforcement capacity except by subpoena, court order or as authorized by the deputy chief or chief of police." According to Adkison, Brown was also served late Monday with an ex parte order of protection taken out against him by his wife, Catina... A judge will determine the legitimacy of that "temporary" order of protection and can choose to throw the action out or make it permanent at a hearing set for Feb. 24 in Rutherford County General Sessions Court... "There are no charges at this time,""There are no charges at this time," Adkison said. "This is an active investigation." Brown, who has worked for the department since July 2004, was also decommissioned in June 2007 following charges that he assaulted his wife... According to his personnel file, Brown was reinstated to duty at the MPD Feb. 8, 2008, following the completion of a comprehensive mental evaluation by Murfreesboro psychiatrist Murphy M. Thomas, who certified he was "free of all mental disorders." The latest investigation of Brown stems from events occurring between Feb. 10 and Feb. 12, according to a domestic violence report filed at MPD last week... THE REPORT POINTS OUT THAT BROWN'S WIFE HAD NO VISIBLE INJURIES AND THAT SHE TOLD POLICE SHE WAS NOT PHYSICALLY INJURED BUT DID FEAR FOR HER SAFETY. [Full article here]

OFFICER ACCUSED OF DOMESTIC ASSAULT LOSES POLICE POWERS
By: Lisa Marchesoni
Posted: Thursday, February 19, 2009 12:02 pm
[Excerpts] ...The wife accused him of grabbing her wrist, causing her arm to be pulled behind her, Sgt. Harry Haigh reported. Their 15-year-old son tried to intervene... [Full article here]

POLICE OFFICER TO ATTEND COUNSELING WITH WIFE
Murfreesboro Post, TN
By: Lisa Marchesoni
Posted: Tuesday, February 24, 2009 3:36 pm
[Excerpts] A Murfreesboro Police officer whose wife obtained a second order of protection against him will

return home
and
attend counseling sessions

with his wife after a hearing Tuesday in Circuit Court... Under an agreement between husband and wife, attorney Ben Parsley said Brown's case will be reviewed again in 45 days and six months.

He and his wife will discuss issues with a minister.

Circuit Court Judge Mark Rogers noted Brown has been in his court twice for orders of protection obtained by his wife. "I don't want a pattern to be started," Rogers told Brown. Sometimes, it's better to stay apart or someone could be hurt later, the judge said. Both Parsley and Domestic Violence Program attorney Mitch Shannon told Rogers the couple plans to attend counseling with a pastor. "Mr. Brown, if things fall through, you should remove yourself from the process," Rogers said. "If something develops - and I'm not going to order it - you remove yourself from the situation." [Full article here]

U.S. Supreme Court: Batterers should not have access to guns.

...Advocates against domestic violence today applauded the U.S. Supreme Court's 7-2 decision to uphold the federal Lautenberg Amendment that bans convicted domestic violence abusers from possessing firearms...

"Firearms and domestic strife are a potentially deadly combination nationwide."
-- Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

"Arming the people who brutally beat their spouses or partners is a recipe for disaster."
-- Sue Else, President of the National Network to End Domestic Violence

"We know a gun in the home makes it much more likely that domestic abuse results in death and today's decision means we can continue keeping guns out of dangerous hands and saving innocent lives."
-- Senator Frank Lautenberg


JUSTICES UPHOLD BAN ON GUNS FOR ABUSERS
Washington Post, United States - 2 hours ago
By Robert Barnes
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
[Excerpts] The Supreme Court yesterday affirmed federal efforts to bar those convicted of crimes involving domestic violence from owning guns. It was the court's first decision concerning gun rights since last year's landmark decision recognizing an individual's Second Amendment right to own a firearm. But the 7 to 2 decision authored by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg contained nary a word about Heller v. District of Columbia, which struck down Washington's ban on handguns. Instead, justices wrangled over language and whether Congress's decision to ban firearms to those convicted of "a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence" extended to someone convicted of a generic charge of battery, so long as there was a proven domestic relationship between the offender and the victim. Ginsburg said Congress might have been inartful in drafting the 1996 law, but its intentions and underlying concerns were clear: "Firearms and domestic strife are a potentially deadly combination nationwide." Ginsburg was citing the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence in that passage, and its president, Paul Helmke, said the ruling is "the right one for victims of domestic abuse and to protect law enforcement officers who are our first responders to domestic violence incidents." [Full article here]

SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS REASONABLE RESTRICTIONS ON GUNS FOR DOMESTIC ABUSERS
PR Newswire (press release)
Peter Hamm phamm@bradymail.org
Feb. 24, 2009
[Excerpts] ...The Court cited arguments made by the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence about the risks posed by firearms in the hands of domestic abusers. The 7-2 ruling in United States v. Hayes was a blow to gun lobby groups that had urged the Court to severely narrow the federal Lautenberg Amendment that bars gun possession by abusers convicted of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence. The Court reversed an earlier ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit that, if upheld, would have allowed convicted abusers in at least 25 states to rearm themselves with firearms... "Today, the Supreme Court sided with abused women and children and against the gun lobby," said Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), a leader in the fight to reduce gun violence and the author of the domestic violence gun ban. "Since it was enacted, my domestic violence gun ban has kept more than 150,000 guns out of the hands of domestic abusers. We know a gun in the home makes it much more likely that domestic abuse results in death and today's decision means we can continue keeping guns out of dangerous hands and saving innocent lives"... The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, joined by law enforcement organizations, had filed a brief in support of the ban on gun possession by all abusers convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence, which was cited by the Court. The brief highlighted the great danger that armed abusers pose to family members of these abusers as well as law enforcement officers summoned to address such violence. On average, more than three people are killed by intimate partners every day in this country. Intimate partner homicides account for up to one-half of all homicides of females. Every year between 1,000 and 1,600 women die at the hands of their male partners, and 14 percent of all police officer deaths occurred during a response to domestic violence calls. THE GROUPS THAT JOINED THE BRADY CENTER BRIEF ARE THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICE, MAJOR CITIES CHIEFS, NATIONAL SHERIFFS' ASSOCIATION, NATIONAL ORGANIZATION OF BLACK LAW ENFORCEMENT EXECUTIVES, HISPANIC AMERICAN POLICE COMMAND OFFICERS ASSOCIATION, POLICE EXECUTIVE RESEARCH FORUM, NATIONAL BLACK POLICE ASSOCIATION, NATIONAL LATINO PEACE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION, LEGAL COMMUNITY AGAINST VIOLENCE, AND SCHOOL SAFETY ADVOCACY COUNCIL... [Full article here]

NATIONAL NETWORK TO END DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PRAISES LANDMARK SUPREME COURT DECISION
PR Newswire (press release), NY
6 hours ago
WASHINGTON, Feb. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Advocates against domestic violence today applauded the U.S. Supreme Court's 7-2 decision to uphold the federal Lautenberg Amendment that bans convicted domestic violence abusers from possessing firearms. The United States v. Hayes ruling reversed a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit that would have posed a serious danger to victims of domestic violence by allowing convicted abusers to maintain firearms. "We are delighted with the Court's decision to uphold reasonable limits on the possession of firearms," said Sue Else, President of the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV). "Batterers should not have access to guns. This decision is a major victory for victims of domestic violence and their families"... The case originated in West Virginia, and the West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence (WVCADV) is also celebrating today's victory. "The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling aligns the Fourth Circuit with the rest of the country; confirms the intention of Congress in responding to the seriousness of domestic violence; and affirms levying real and long term consequences on people who use violence... NNEDV, joined by the Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project (DV LEAP) at George Washington University Law School, filed a brief supporting the sensible ban on gun possession by all offenders convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence. The Court cited the brief in its decision... "Arming the people who brutally beat their spouses or partners is a recipe for disaster," Else said. "The Supreme Court made the right decision by upholding the domestic violence gun ban, keeping guns out of the hands of batterers and helping victims recovering from abuse to stay safe"... [Full article here]