Posted on 07/28/2006 4:52:22 AM PDT by abb
DURHAM -- Raleigh police have charged two Durham Police Department officers in connection with an incident that occurred July 20 outside a Glenwood Avenue sports bar.
The officers, Gary Powell Lee, 38, of 3588 Copper Creek Lane, Franklinton, and Scott Christian Tanner, 33, of 2516 Hiking Trail, Raleigh, both face counts of simple assault. Conviction on the misdemeanor carries with it, for someone with no prior offenses on their record, the possibility of a maximum 30-day jail sentence and a $1,000 fine.
Lee and Tanner are accused of assaulting Rene Dennis Thomas, a cook who works at Blinco's Sports Restaurant and Bar, 6711 Glenwood Ave., Raleigh. The charges stem from a parking-lot altercation that occurred late on July 20 as five current and two former Durham Police Department officers were leaving a going-away party for a departing officer.
A criminal summons issued Thursday alleged that Lee, a member of the department's Special Operations Division, tried to strike Thomas and tackled him, causing the cook to fall to the ground. A second summons alleged that Tanner, a motorcycle officer who works in the department's Traffic Services Unit, kicked Thomas in the head.
Thomas has told television reporters that as many as six men participated in the assault, which began with an exchange of racial slurs. But Raleigh Police Department spokesman Jim Sughrue said detectives in that city don't intend to charge anyone else in connection with the incident, or add later to the charges they've already filed.
"It's been extensively investigated, and we're confident that the responsible individuals have been charged," Sughrue said.
But Lee and Tanner -- and three of their colleagues -- could still face sanctions from the Durham Police Department. An internal investigation is continuing and should conclude in two to three weeks, Police Chief Steve Chalmers said at a news conference Thursday.
The Durham probe is focusing on a wider range of issues that include the alleged use of racial slurs. "The alleged conduct is something that is certainly deplorable to us, and something we don't want to be consistent in the way we operate and conduct ourselves," Chalmers said. "The entire allegation is disturbing."
Lee and Tanner had previously been restricted to administrative duties, and remain so. The other three officers in the case -- Sgt. Mark Gottlieb, Officer Richard Clayton and Officer James Griffin -- had also been restricted but on Thursday were allowed to resume their normal duties.
The decision doesn't mean the three have been cleared, but does indicate that based on "the facts we've already uncovered ... there's no reason we can't put these officers back on full duty," Chalmers said.
Asked later if that meant the three had played only a minor role in the incident, Chalmers said, "At least we can say it wasn't a major role."
All of the officers have the right to a lawyer's help, and two, Gottlieb and Lee, have retained the Durham firm of Clayton Myrick McClanahan & Coulter to represent them as the internal investigation and criminal case unfold.
A lawyer there, Allen Mason, confirmed Thursday that senior partner Jerry Clayton had spoken to Gottlieb and that another of his colleagues, former Assistant District Attorney Freda Black, had spoken to Lee.
One of the two former Durham officers involved in the case, James Kennedy, has also retained Clayton's firm and has talked with Mason. Kennedy is a former motorcycle officer who left the department late last year. The other former Durham officer who was present remains unidentified.
Asked if the lawyers and their clients would speak up to offer their version of what happened, Mason said there's "not a chance in the world" of that happening outside formal channels.
"We're not Duke lacrosse lawyers," Mason said alluding to the year's most highly publicized Durham Police Department case, one that Gottlieb and Richard Clayton, who's no relation to lawyer Jerry Clayton, have both worked on. "We don't practice that way. We don't comment about pending cases, we don't do interviews, we don't make statements."
The Raleigh charges were notable for the fact that they didn't address what Thomas has said was the first act of the confrontation, a move by one of the men involved to poke him in the shoulder with a finger. The charge against Lee addressed an act Thomas alleged was committed immediately afterward by a second man, and the charge against Tanner addressed something that happened after Thomas fell to the ground.
The shoulder poke was likely a criminal act under North Carolina law, given court decisions that have held "the merest unauthorized touching of another [person] is an assault," said Barry Winston, a criminal-defense lawyer in Chapel Hill.
A judge "who strictly interprets the law would, I suspect, hold that North Carolina law requires him to convict someone who walks up to someone and in an antagonistic fashion pokes that person with his finger," although that's "not what the average person thinks of as assault," Winston said.
Raleigh detectives filed Thursday's charges after consulting prosecutors in Wake County District Attorney Colon Willoughby's office, a move Sughrue said is standard in officer-involved cases. The spokesman declined to say why there wasn't a charge addressing the alleged shoulder-poke.
"Based on the investigation of the case, and facts present, it was determined that these two charges were the appropriate charges to bring," Sughrue said.
Thomas was surprised Thursday to hear that the charges involved the officers they did. "Lee and Tanner? Huh. OK. Check that again and call me back," he said before cutting off a brief interview. "I don't think you have the right guys."
The cook did not elaborate, and did not return a call placed to his cell phone late Thursday afternoon.
The Raleigh department's decision to issue a criminal summons for each of the officers, rather than an arrest warrant, saved Lee and Tanner an appearance before a magistrate and possibly the need to post bail to avoid detention. Sughrue said the officers didn't receive any special treatment.
"That is very typically the way a simple assault case is handled," he said. "That's very consistent with the way we'd handle the same case if the suspects had not been law enforcement officers."
Also routine was the Raleigh department's decision to assign detectives from its own internal-affairs unit to work the case. No matter what agency they work for, when police are "suspect in a case in Raleigh, the case is investigated by internal affairs," Sughrue said.
Elected officials said they're watching how the criminal case plays out.
Mayor Bill Bell said the allegations, if true, are unfortunate. "If in fact it did happen, I'd hope they'd be prosecuted to the fullest extent," he said.
City Councilman Eugene Brown agreed. "It's always problematic when you have those hired and paid for enforcing the law breaking the law," he said. "I want to withhold judgment, but so far, this is just embarrassing."
Lee has worked for the department since 1999. Tanner joined the force in 1997, and was recently the beneficiary of a department-organized fundraiser intended to help him and another officer pay for cancer treatments. He suffers from Hodgkin's
There ain't enough money on Earth.
Well we do know the FA is crazy as a bat......
Re: Cabbie Shot in Durham
YES.
I'm not saying it's connected. Not at all, HOWEVER, I'm saying the crazy, unbelievable things that have happened in this case, have made almost everything believable in Durham!
As we get farther away from the night of the party, the discussion slows, and the shock has worn off.
When you insert another person and place and consider the treatment of these LAX players - it illustrates how egregiously they've been treated.
If I fashioned a false news report and one read that Sgt Gottlieb has been banned charged with assault and he has been BANNED from Raleigh. One would think how harsh and unusual of a sentence to impose.
There wasn't much of that reaction to Finnerty in Georgetown. People are expecting this kids to get screwed at this point. IMO, it has, in large part, become the status-quo.
would = wouldn't
. . . . . . . . . . IS NIFONG SPEAKING IN CODE HERE?
I think Nifong is speaking in code here, when he says, (the LAX Gang-rape) "demands a Durham solution."
"A Durham Solution." More race baiting? Justice is Justice, no matter the address, but Nifong has other ideas.
Cheek says he never had the conversation that Nifong describes in his press conference on Friday.
In multiple ways, Cheek implies that Nifong's statements don't even make sense.
http://www.heraldsun.com/durham/4-756712.html
One more person calling in question Nifong's truthfulness.
But yet he will not run against him............
Yes, but, Nifong is continuing the same charade that he is this caring compassionate man and that his valiant fight for justice is being done at the risk of his personal interests.
He chose the case BECAUSE of his personal interests. He secured the indictments BEFORE the election and used a fixed ID lineup to get them in time for the election.
Now, Nifong is basically telling the public in an offical press conference that he was approached by 2 influential people and they advised him to Drop the Case or he would suffer personally - AND the NIFONG stood up against such back door dealing and did what was right and just for the world !
If you eliminate Cheek from the equation and just listen to what Nifong says about himself - he's saying that he has done all this in the name of Justice and he has suffered personally for his good deeds. He is saying that he will continue to ignore the personal consequences to him (he's not a politician, according to him) and go full steam ahead in the pursuit of a "Durham Solution".
* * * * * CLUES TO THE MOTIVATION OF THE INVESTIGATION? * *
"Durham Police Chief Steve Chalmers said the incident allegedly involving officers Gary Lee and Scott Tanner would have NO EFFECT on his department's LACROSSE rape investigation. Neither of them is working on the Duke investigation.
"As far as I'm concerned, they're two totally different areas of concern, and WE'RE NOT TYING ONE TO THE OTHER," Chalmers said Thursday."
http://rdu.news14.com/content/top_stories/?ArID=88321&SecID=1
"WE'RE NOT TYING ONE TO THE OTHER,"
Sounds like the goal of the entire investigation
This morning's stories...
Nifong says some criticism justified
http://www.heraldsun.com/durham/4-756712.html
Nifong accepts merits of criticism
http://www.newsobserver.com/102/story/465647.html
Buried in the sidebar of this story this very important development...
Court officials have taken steps toward having the Duke rape case declared "exceptional," which would allow a single judge to schedule and manage the cases against three lacrosse players.
Durham Trial Court Administrator Kathy Shuart said the parties in the case have agreed in principle to the designation, which would remove the case from Durham's case management system. Instead of monthly court hearings being set, a single judge, who would be appointed by state judicial officials, would decide when to hear motions or call the parties into court, Shuart said.
Duke president offers reply to criticism
http://www.newsobserver.com/102/story/465495.html
Pinging DukeLax List. Very important developments. See post above...
"a single judge, who would be appointed by state judicial official"
Well, if it's a judge from outside the Durham crowd,
then there is a chance that may be an improvement.
But right now I am so disillusioned with and disgusted by
N. Carolina that I'm really not expecting much.
(The SBI should be in there investigating Nifong and the Durham prostitution rings and all the rest of the city
government. The AG should have taken control of this case
from Nifong--which despite his ridiculous denials, he has the power to do. And the governor should be asked by the lapdog press--or rather, the accessory press, since they have at each step of the way contributed to this crime of a prosecution--why he appointed Nifong and whether he is now disappointed in him.)
Keep up the pressure, folks.
It's only the spotlight of public opinion which is keeping the Durham crowd from getting away with this (they've operated in the dark before); and NC is only acting at all because of embarassment (justice has little to do with any actions taken by the bar or the judicial system or the law schools in NC--witness the great Duke University school of law, remaining piously silent while a lynching takes place on its front lawn. What magnificent moral authority they will have after this is all over--NOT!)
And of course, no pissant Durham County judge wants to have this hot potato(e) handed to him...
"And of course, no pissant Durham County judge wants to have this hot potato(e) handed to him..."
Which shows how far they are from the ideal of what judges are supposed to be. Being afraid of the public reation if they should make a just ruling, is not in the job desciption.
I'm optimistic about this news. And considering the timing, I think that this is "the deal" that allowed Cheek to drop out of the race. Heck! The story is a side bar to Nifong's reaction to Cheek's announcement that he would not run. Don't tell me that this isn't related!
And really! Why did Nifong even have to have a news conference? Think about it. Nifong is the sole candidate on the ballot, then enoough signatures are collected to place Cheek, a Democrat, on the ballot (and to keep GOP Monks off of it), then Cheek decides not to run for some lame excuse, and Nifong holds a news conference and releases a statement. Is this bizarre or what?
Cheek's platform was the appointment of a special prosecutor. He didn't get quite that much to drop out of the race (which I'm convinced that he never wanted to run, but the entire matter had to be contained by the local Democrats), but he did get a judge who would not be beholden to the Durham voters.
And this comes right before the third setting when all of those dispositive motions are going to be heard. And the third setting is before the Duke students are back. I wouldn't be surprised if the case is gone before Labor Day.
It strikes me that the only purpose for Nifong to have that news conference was to assure his black constituency that he still believes in this case. But out of the other side of his mouth, Nifong is talking about mistakes and lack of evidence. By appointing an out-of-Durham official to make the call and take the heat, Nifong gets out of this mess and keeps his office.
Sorry that was long.
It's definitely good news, MM. It would be interesting to learn who/what/where/when the negotiations took place...
Re: Re: The Blinco's line cook says,
Author: TRYTON77VI
EVERYONE knows DPD is pulling a cover up to keep the two Duke Lacrosse Investigators clean. .. . BREAKING NEWS... You ballbags at the Durham Police Dept.... ARENT FOOLING ANYONE! OH ... and
BTW ... someone should tell that COP with black hair and mustatch that he should be Driving that SILVER DURHAM POLICE RECURIT VAN when he's drinking up at TEASER'S MENS CLUB.. people are starting to talk.
Posted: 7/29/06 12:28 AM
///
We found the mustache!
Seriously, who can ID this cop, and the others?
Link to said establishment...
http://www.teasersmensclub.com/
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