Post by WaTcHeR on Jun 8, 2006 14:02:38 GMT -5
06.08.2006 - KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Although a judge had ruled that a man who spent eight years in prison for burglary had been framed by police, jurors who heard the man's lawsuit found no liability.
The case decided Monday in Jackson County Circuit Court dates back more than 20 years, and led to a malicious prosecution lawsuit filed by Oren Gamble and his wife, Debra. They sued two former Kansas City police officers, Jim Browning and Dan Cline, as well as former members of the police board and James McCoy Jr., who made a deal with police to cooperate in their investigation of Gamble after Gamble snitched on him.
Gamble was a longtime informer with a burglary record who told police in 1985 that McCoy, whose father and uncle were police officers, had committed burglary.
Gamble told Browning in a phone call that he would try to catch McCoy in the act of committing a burglary. Testifying about the call, Browning told Gamble not to break any glass and to call police when it happened.
Meanwhile, police told McCoy that Gamble snitched on him and that he wouldn't face any charges if he were to wear a wire and catch Gamble stealing. In November 1985, the two men sat in a car outside a convenience store, each urging the other to commit burglary.
McCoy broke the store window with a rock after Gamble refused, and police rushed in and took Gamble to jail, while giving McCoy a ride to the home of his uncle, the police officer.
Browning did not tell attorneys about the call he received from Gamble, who did not know McCoy set him up. Gamble pleaded guilty to burglary. As a repeat offender, he received a suspended 15-year sentence and probation. He went to prison in 1987 for failing to meet terms of the probation, and ended up spending eight years behind bars and six more on parole.
While on parole, Gamble used a hidden video camera to record McCoy admitting what had happened.
In a video played at the trial of Gamble's lawsuit, McCoy told Gamble's brother, "When he rolled over on me, I rolled right back over on him. He snitched to the wrong people. He snitched to people that my family knew, which you know is all cops. Snitched to them, and they called me about it."
A Jackson County judge who saw the tapes and other evidence in 2001 overturned Gamble's conviction and ordered him freed, saying he never would have been convicted if police had told prosecutors and defense lawyers about Gamble's call to Browning and other details.
Douglas Leyshock, the lawyer for Browning and Cline, said Gamble was not acting as an informant on the night in question and that officers were right to go after him because he still was involved in burglary and fenced goods.
He told jurors they were considering "respectable police" on one hand, and on the other "an admitted felon whose testimony has been lie upon lie."
Joe Bednar, representing Gamble and his wife, told jurors the case was about police misconduct.
"It's about protecting a cop's kid," he said.
One of the jurors said the panel could not conclude that police acted maliciously, as required by their instructions.
The case decided Monday in Jackson County Circuit Court dates back more than 20 years, and led to a malicious prosecution lawsuit filed by Oren Gamble and his wife, Debra. They sued two former Kansas City police officers, Jim Browning and Dan Cline, as well as former members of the police board and James McCoy Jr., who made a deal with police to cooperate in their investigation of Gamble after Gamble snitched on him.
Gamble was a longtime informer with a burglary record who told police in 1985 that McCoy, whose father and uncle were police officers, had committed burglary.
Gamble told Browning in a phone call that he would try to catch McCoy in the act of committing a burglary. Testifying about the call, Browning told Gamble not to break any glass and to call police when it happened.
Meanwhile, police told McCoy that Gamble snitched on him and that he wouldn't face any charges if he were to wear a wire and catch Gamble stealing. In November 1985, the two men sat in a car outside a convenience store, each urging the other to commit burglary.
McCoy broke the store window with a rock after Gamble refused, and police rushed in and took Gamble to jail, while giving McCoy a ride to the home of his uncle, the police officer.
Browning did not tell attorneys about the call he received from Gamble, who did not know McCoy set him up. Gamble pleaded guilty to burglary. As a repeat offender, he received a suspended 15-year sentence and probation. He went to prison in 1987 for failing to meet terms of the probation, and ended up spending eight years behind bars and six more on parole.
While on parole, Gamble used a hidden video camera to record McCoy admitting what had happened.
In a video played at the trial of Gamble's lawsuit, McCoy told Gamble's brother, "When he rolled over on me, I rolled right back over on him. He snitched to the wrong people. He snitched to people that my family knew, which you know is all cops. Snitched to them, and they called me about it."
A Jackson County judge who saw the tapes and other evidence in 2001 overturned Gamble's conviction and ordered him freed, saying he never would have been convicted if police had told prosecutors and defense lawyers about Gamble's call to Browning and other details.
Douglas Leyshock, the lawyer for Browning and Cline, said Gamble was not acting as an informant on the night in question and that officers were right to go after him because he still was involved in burglary and fenced goods.
He told jurors they were considering "respectable police" on one hand, and on the other "an admitted felon whose testimony has been lie upon lie."
Joe Bednar, representing Gamble and his wife, told jurors the case was about police misconduct.
"It's about protecting a cop's kid," he said.
One of the jurors said the panel could not conclude that police acted maliciously, as required by their instructions.