Post by WaTcHeR on Oct 25, 2006 14:41:38 GMT -5
10.25.2006 - A smoke break during a family outing turned into a fiasco during which Patricia and Mack Brown say their civil rights were violated by a Shreveport police officer.
Patricia Brown says she was handcuffed, verbally attacked, pushed against a gate and her husband was thrown to the ground by officer Fred Clinton after an interaction with the officer that began with a question of where she could smoke.
"My kids were screaming and crying and yelling at the officer, 'please let my daddy up,' and then as he leaned in to cuff my husband, he said he would tazer him," said Patricia Brown, who was at Battle of the Bands on Sunday at Independence Stadium to watch her 14-year-old daughter play the clarinet and march with the Fair Park High School band. "In my 44 years I never imaged being handcuffed. I don't think I would have been any less embarrassed if he'd stripped me naked in front of everyone.
"I have no beef with anyone else, it was just one. The other officers looked dumbfounded."
Monday, Patricia Brown and her father, the Rev. Lamar Holden, held media interviews and passed out copies of the summons given to the Browns and of the complaint affidavit filed with the police.
Holden, the minister for 26 years of Pilgrim Baptist Church in Shreveport, wants to send a message to the Shreveport Police Department.
"Don't cover up for him," said Holden, who was also at Sunday's event and walked up on the scene to see his daughter and son-in-law, who has cancer, in handcuffs. "I hate to do this, but Shreveporters need to be aware of thugs hiding behind badges. This shouldn't happen."
According to Patricia Brown and detailed in her complaint affidavit to the police, the incident began when she decided to take a smoke break before her daughter's band performed. She asked police where she could smoke and there seemed to be a disagreement where that was, even among the police officers present, she added.
Later in the event when Patricia Brown returned to her smoking area for another cigarette, Clinton overheard a comment she made to her sister.
"I was telling my sister that he was the officer that didn't want me to smoke before," said Brown, who then described the melee.
Patricia Brown says she was handcuffed before she knew it and her sister went up to get Brown's husband and the rest of the family and a small crowd of friends were soon at the scene.
Patricia Brown says her husband was warned by a female officer to back up.
"But because my husband kept asking, 'What's going on?' Clinton went up to him kicked his legs out and forced him to the ground," she said. "They walked us out and put us in separate police cars."
Instead of being arrested, Brown and her husband were served with a summons to appear in court Nov. 21: Patricia Brown for disturbing the peace and her husband for being in violation of Revised State statue 14:329.2 "" Command to disperse, given by a police officer if he believes a riot is occurring or about to occur.
A supervisor with the Police Department visited the Browns at their home Sunday evening after she attempted to make a call to police Chief Mike Campbell.
"I don't understand this. I've never gotten in trouble with the police and my kids are honor students," she said.
Police Chief Mike Campbell said he knew little and could not discuss any details concerning the incident when he answered questions for the media at a 1:30 p.m. meeting.
"It's an allegation at this point and it will be investigated like any other internal investigation," Campbell said. "I do know in my 33 years on the job if there is one lesson it's that there are two sides to every story and the truth is somewhere in between."
The Internal Affairs department has 60 days to complete the investigation, in which time they will conduct interviews that will include taking with Clinton, other officers, witnesses and the complainant.
Holden, a charter member of the Coalition for Social Justice, is taking his concerns to the City Council on Tuesday and putting out calls to CNN news.
"We have a fine police chief," Holden said. "It's just that we have one bad apple."
www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061024/NEWS01/610240327/1002/NEWS
Patricia Brown says she was handcuffed, verbally attacked, pushed against a gate and her husband was thrown to the ground by officer Fred Clinton after an interaction with the officer that began with a question of where she could smoke.
"My kids were screaming and crying and yelling at the officer, 'please let my daddy up,' and then as he leaned in to cuff my husband, he said he would tazer him," said Patricia Brown, who was at Battle of the Bands on Sunday at Independence Stadium to watch her 14-year-old daughter play the clarinet and march with the Fair Park High School band. "In my 44 years I never imaged being handcuffed. I don't think I would have been any less embarrassed if he'd stripped me naked in front of everyone.
"I have no beef with anyone else, it was just one. The other officers looked dumbfounded."
Monday, Patricia Brown and her father, the Rev. Lamar Holden, held media interviews and passed out copies of the summons given to the Browns and of the complaint affidavit filed with the police.
Holden, the minister for 26 years of Pilgrim Baptist Church in Shreveport, wants to send a message to the Shreveport Police Department.
"Don't cover up for him," said Holden, who was also at Sunday's event and walked up on the scene to see his daughter and son-in-law, who has cancer, in handcuffs. "I hate to do this, but Shreveporters need to be aware of thugs hiding behind badges. This shouldn't happen."
According to Patricia Brown and detailed in her complaint affidavit to the police, the incident began when she decided to take a smoke break before her daughter's band performed. She asked police where she could smoke and there seemed to be a disagreement where that was, even among the police officers present, she added.
Later in the event when Patricia Brown returned to her smoking area for another cigarette, Clinton overheard a comment she made to her sister.
"I was telling my sister that he was the officer that didn't want me to smoke before," said Brown, who then described the melee.
Patricia Brown says she was handcuffed before she knew it and her sister went up to get Brown's husband and the rest of the family and a small crowd of friends were soon at the scene.
Patricia Brown says her husband was warned by a female officer to back up.
"But because my husband kept asking, 'What's going on?' Clinton went up to him kicked his legs out and forced him to the ground," she said. "They walked us out and put us in separate police cars."
Instead of being arrested, Brown and her husband were served with a summons to appear in court Nov. 21: Patricia Brown for disturbing the peace and her husband for being in violation of Revised State statue 14:329.2 "" Command to disperse, given by a police officer if he believes a riot is occurring or about to occur.
A supervisor with the Police Department visited the Browns at their home Sunday evening after she attempted to make a call to police Chief Mike Campbell.
"I don't understand this. I've never gotten in trouble with the police and my kids are honor students," she said.
Police Chief Mike Campbell said he knew little and could not discuss any details concerning the incident when he answered questions for the media at a 1:30 p.m. meeting.
"It's an allegation at this point and it will be investigated like any other internal investigation," Campbell said. "I do know in my 33 years on the job if there is one lesson it's that there are two sides to every story and the truth is somewhere in between."
The Internal Affairs department has 60 days to complete the investigation, in which time they will conduct interviews that will include taking with Clinton, other officers, witnesses and the complainant.
Holden, a charter member of the Coalition for Social Justice, is taking his concerns to the City Council on Tuesday and putting out calls to CNN news.
"We have a fine police chief," Holden said. "It's just that we have one bad apple."
www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061024/NEWS01/610240327/1002/NEWS