Posted on 12/12/2002 5:03:27 PM PST by Dog Gone
Two ranking Houston police officers accused of unlawfully arresting patrons at a westside store and restaurant made their first court appearance today on charges of official oppression.
Lawyers for Capt. Mark Aguirre and Sgt. Ken Wenzel waived the officers' rights to an arraignment, a formality in which the charges against them would have been read aloud in court.
Each faces five charges of official oppression in an Aug. 18 raid at a Kmart and Sonic Drive-In this summer in which more than 270 people were arrested, most of them teens.
The arrests were heavily criticized by parents and community leaders which led to the investigation of several officers.
The legal woes of the two officers and the city continued Wednesday as they were targeted by two more lawsuits over the raid.
The lawsuits, filed on behalf of 43 people who were arrested in the Aug. 18 raid, accuse Aguirre, Wenzel and the city of false arrest, false imprisonment and civil rights violations.
The two lawsuits, both filed by lawyer Paul Rosen, seek unspecified damages. One was filed on behalf of Harris County resident Roland T. Ross, his 10-year-old daughter and 14-year-old son.
The other represents a group of 40 people, including Jessica Paine, who is listed among the complainants in the criminal indictments that a county grand jury issued last week against Aguirre and Wenzel.
The charges later were dropped, and the department launched the largest internal investigation in its history. Several other lawsuits have been filed against the city and police, seeking millions of dollars in damages.
Aguirre orchestrated the raid that originally was planned to target drag racers on Westheimer. No racers were out that night but hundreds of teens and young adults were hanging out at the store's parking lot adjacent to the restaurant in the 8400 block of Westheimer.
Although many told officers they were customers at the Kmart or the restaurant, they were arrested for trespassing and curfew violations. The charges later were dropped and 13 police supervisors were suspended with pay as the Police Department launched the largest internal investigation in its history.
Last week a grand jury indicted Aguirre and Wenzel for their roles in the raid. Charges were not leveled against 11 of the supervisors. The 11 remain suspended with pay from the force until a police internal investigation is completed.
Aguirre and Wenzel are suspended with pay until their court cases are settled.
Their next court date is scheduled for Jan. 17 in state District Judge Carol Davies' court.
Lawyer Terry W. Yates told Davies a plea agreement is not an option. After the brief court appearance Yates told reporters the trial is likely to occur next spring.
"There wasn't any deal ever offered because we told them we never would accept a deal," Yates told reporters. "Because they are both innocent there will not be any plea bargain at all.
Prosecutor Tommy LaFon did not comment afterward. Prosecutors typically do not comment on a pending case.
Yates had been represented both of the the officers, but Wenzel will now be represented by Joe Bailey.
Ross states in his lawsuit that he and his children had driven to the Kmart to shop and were looking for a parking space when police approached.
"He and his children were stopped, detained and ultimately arrested," although they were lawfully on the property, the lawsuit alleges.
The plaintiffs in Wednesday's other lawsuit are listed as residents of Brenham, Katy, Waller and Lake Jackson, as well as Harris County.
That group also contends they were at the Kmart or Sonic for legitimate reasons and were falsely arrested and imprisoned.
Aguirre and Wenzel, who have served in the department for 23 and 26 years, respectively, will remain suspended until after trial.
There's the 10 year old girl you didn't think existed.
This paragraph seems poorly placed. Its placement suggests that charges were dropped against Aguirre et al., but I think it's talking about the charges against the so-called "trespassers". BTW, I'm surprised there's no class-action case here involving all of the so-called "trespassers". Even if some of them shouldn't have been there, that in no way excluses officers' wanton and reckless disregard for whether tresspassing charges were appropriate against any one individual.
They have yet to do ANY of that, and it will cost the city far more.
It's still getting a lot of play here in Houston, at least with each new development, although it's not mentioned everyday.
If this had happened to me I would let the city off if I got:
1. Reimbursement for towing, damage to vehicle (if any), bail, lost work time etc.
2. Three times my normal hourly wage for all time from the the moment the officer said "hold it right there" to the moment I returned home after making bail, and any other time spent on this case.
3. A written apology signed by the District Attorney, with carbon copies to my parents and employer.
4. Complete expungement of all records, including NCIC and all other cop databases.
5. The arresting officer would have to kiss my hindquarters, at noon, on the city hall steps, in front of all the local networks and newspapers.
Anything less than the above and I would sue for more money than the whole world is worth.
With the assumptin that they have a valid case, I admit it appears that there were in deed some people unjustly harassed by the police. However, I'd still be curious what a 10-year old and a 14-year old were doing out at 12:30 am, whether with a parent or not. It doesn't remove guilt from the police's actions, but I'm curious if we simply had an irresponsible parent who left his children at Sonic while he mingled with the drag racers
One point of clarification, though. Everyone concedes that there were no street racers in the parking lot that night.
All I will say is that everyone concedes that no one was caught racing that night - and that's really all that matters as a matter of law. My personal beliefs do not matter in a court of law :-)
I would be surprised if there are any new developments in this case before January 17, although additional lawsuits could be filed at any time.
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