Michigan Cop charged with hitting handcuffed suspect
- OFR -
hitting handcuffed
suspect
Friday, August 17, 2001
By John S. Hausman
CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
A Muskegon Heights police officer has been charged
with assault and battery in connection with an incident
last November in which he allegedly punched a seated,
handcuffed suspect in the face without provocation.
Charged last week with the misdemeanor was Officer
David Anthony Anderson, 24. Anderson was arraigned
Aug. 8 before visiting 60th District Judge Donald
Neitzel, pleaded not guilty and was freed on a $100
personal recognizance bond.
If convicted, Anderson could get up to 90 days in jail or
be fined $500.
Anderson was suspended with pay pending the outcome
of the case after the criminal charge was lodged,
Muskegon Heights Police Chief George Smith Jr. said
Thursday.
Although the incident happened Nov. 5, only in March
did Smith refer the matter to the Muskegon County
Sheriff's Department for an independent investigation.
"That was a matter of locating the complainant," Smith
said Thursday about the four-month time lag.
The alleged victim had not filed a complaint against
Anderson. However, a fellow police officer reported the
incident to his supervisor immediately afterward, and
submitted a written report within a few days.
At Smith's request, Muskegon County Sheriff's
Detective Lt. Dennis Edwards in March investigated the
Nov. 5 incident, as well as two other complaints that had
been lodged against Anderson alleging brutality against
people in police custody.
Another complaint involved a Nov. 2, 2000, incident, in
which two fellow officers alleged Anderson slapped a
drug suspect in the face while the suspect had his hands
on the hood of a police cruiser stopped at Airline Road
and Peck Street.
The other incident happened March 3 of this year. In
that case, Anderson struck a combative suspect several
times on the head with his handcuffs, leaving the man
briefly unconscious. Anderson said the suspect was
trying to grab his handgun, and striking him was the only
way he could hang onto his weapon.
Following Edwards' investigation, the Muskegon County
Prosecutor's office referred the sheriff's department
reports on the three complaints to the Michigan Attorney
General's office for an opinion on whether criminal
charges should be issued, "due to the fact that my office
has worked closely with the officers involved,"
Prosecutor Tony Tague said.
The result was a recommendation by Assistant Attorney
General Robert Ianni, chief of the department's criminal
division, that witness testimony in the Nov. 5 case _but
not the other two _ was clear enough to merit
prosecution.
On the advice of the attorney general's office, Tague
referred the complaint to the Kent County Prosecutor's
office.
The Nov. 5 incident happened around 5 p.m. on West
Broadway Avenue near Sixth Street.
It happened shortly after a foot chase by several
Muskegon Heights officers led to the tackling and
handcuffing of Gregory Bernard Walker, then 18, of
2721 Seventh. Walker was suspected at the time of
dealing drugs, although no charges were brought against
him afterward.
After his apprehension, Walker _ his hands cuffed
behind him _was sitting in the middle of the back seat of
a police cruiser driven by Muskegon Heights Officer
Marvin Gene Petty. According to Petty's later report, he
was driving Walker east on Broadway en route to the
police station when Anderson _who was walking on the
sidewalk after having taken part in the foot chase
_flagged him down near Sixth.
Petty pulled over to the curb. Then, according to Petty's
internal report shortly after the incident, Anderson
walked over, pulled the rear passenger door open "and
asked if this was the guy." Petty wrote that he told
Anderson that Walker was the man the officers had
been chasing.
Then, Petty wrote, "I observed Anderson's arm reach
into the vehicle. I turned my head around a little more
and observed Anderson close the door quickly, at the
same time I heard Walker yell something." Petty wrote
that Walker told him Anderson punched him in the face
for no reason.
After reaching the police station, Petty wrote, he told his
supervisor, Lt. George Hubbard, what Walker said had
happened, because Walker was accusing Petty of letting
Anderson punch him.
"After I entered the building, I asked Anderson what
was going on. Anderson told me that he was sorry for
involving me in this. I told him that I have to tell Lt.
Hubbard what happened," Petty wrote.
In Edwards' later interview with Petty, the officer was
more explicit.
"According to Petty, not even two seconds later (after
Anderson opened the car door) he saw out of his
peripheral vision what appeared to be Anderson's fist go
into the car," Edwards wrote. "Petty did not see the fist
connect but he immediately heard George Walker
comment something to the effect, 'Did you see that s-, he
hit me for nothing,' and 'Why did you let him do me like
that, punching me all up in my face for no reason?'
"Petty's response was to yell 'What the f-,"' Edwards
wrote. "Petty says he knew what happened back there
because there wasn't any conversation, just the swing
followed by Walker's comments."
Edwards wrote that he then asked Petty if there was any
way it could have happened the way Anderson claimed
_ that the handcuffed, seated Walker first tried to kick
Anderson in the chest, then Anderson defended himself
by hitting Walker in the face.
Petty replied that it couldn't have happened that way,
Edwards wrote, telling the detective: "'Anderson just
opened the door like he was going to identify him,
leaned in, that was it. ... He shouldn't have done that. To
me, you know ... he had no reason to do that."'
In Edwards' March interview with Walker, the alleged
victim "says Officer Anderson opened the door,
punched him in the eye and (Petty) asked Anderson why
he did that," Edwards wrote. Walker denied trying to
kick Anderson.
Anderson declined Edwards' request to come in for an
interview, Edwards wrote.
The detective concluded, based on his interviews and
reviews of reports, that seeking a charge of assault and
battery against Anderson would be justified. Edwards
concluded that Petty's version of events was "very
credible," that Walker's reported statements at the time
of the incident were not consistent with someone who
had just tried to kick Anderson, and that Anderson's
apology to Petty made no sense if Anderson had only
been defending himself.
Edwards concluded, even if the handcuffed Walker had
tried to kick Anderson, "there was no continued threat
to Officer Anderson for him to even slap, much less
punch, Walker."
Anderson was hired less than a year before the Nov. 5
incident and was still on probationary status at the time,
Smith told The Chronicle earlier this year. Anderson had
formerly worked for the Detroit police for about two
years, Smith said.
Anderson and his attorney, Frank Carrozza, declined to
comment on the case.
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