Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 2, 1993 TAG: 9306020181
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RON BROWN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Holt also has requested that the federal government initiate a civil rights investigation. The city Police Department and Sheriff's Office are conducting internal investigations following his complaint.
Holt obtained criminal summonses for Sheriff's Deputy D.K. Bell and Police Officers G.L. Brown, R.L. Hague and J.M. Donaldson on Tuesday afternoon, magistrates said.
Holt, a transvestite who frequents Salem Avenue Southwest, says the officers hit him with a flashlight, kicked him and spit on him after he was arrested outside a nightspot on Salem Avenue early Saturday.
Police Chief M. David Hooper said Holt initiated the confrontation with police about 2:15 a.m. Saturday outside the Back Street Cafe.
"He went to them; they didn't go to him," Hooper said.
Holt was charged with interfering with police, who had gone to the nightspot following a disturbance complaint.
"It turned out that the complaint was about him," Hooper said. "A man said he just wanted to go home to West Virginia, and [Holt] wouldn't let him leave."
Hooper said Holt also was bragging to police about his legal accomplishments, which include a successful challenge this year of the city's solicitation ordinance. Holt has been arrested 16 times in the past year on charges including prostitution. He was convicted of prostitution once and paid a $100 fine.
As in the past, Holt told a different version than police of what happened early Saturday.
He said he saw a police car when he walked out of the restaurant. He said he walked in front of the car and heard Brown yelling at him.
"Get out of the way you faggot . . .," he quoted Brown as saying.
"Who the hell are you talking to?" Holt said he asked the officer.
Police officers then ran up and told him he was under arrest, Holt said.
He said he told them to be careful with his left arm, which recently was broken.
He said one of the officers reached to grab his left arm and he pulled away. Then the rest jumped on him, he said.
Holt said he was hit in the head and shoulder with a flashlight. He said his wrist was cut by handcuffs applied too tightly.
He said he was taken to jail where he was left bleeding and handcuffed while sitting on bench. He was chewing gum and had to spit it out because he was winded from the scuffle, he said.
"Don't spit at me, faggot," he quoted Bell as saying.
"He backhanded me and left me hanging off the bench by my broken arm," Holt said.
After about 10 minutes, he said, he was taken back to a cell by Bell and two other deputies.
He said he was having trouble walking and fell. Bell then kicked him in the chest and put his foot across his throat, Holt said.
He said one of the other deputies had to pull Bell off him.
Holt said that 20 minutes later, Bell walked back to his cell and spit in his face.
"I won't rest until I see justice done," Holt said. "I won't rest until I see them out of uniform."
Hague and Donaldson had been assigned to administrative duties last month after the death of Eric Scott Lee, who died after being grabbed around the neck by police. Authorities are awaiting a decision by Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell on whether police acted properly in the Lee case.
Officers were attempting to subdue Lee after responding to a domestic dispute in Southeast Roanoke.
Hooper decided last week to return Hague and Donaldson to patrol duties. He said they had been placed on administrative duty only because of concerns about how the stress of the incident would affect them.
"I felt the time was appropriate and the investigation had progressed to the point that it was not only our best interest, but their's" to go back on patrol, Hooper said.
Caldwell said Tuesday he had been aware that at least one of the officers had returned to regular duties. "That's entirely Police Department policy," he said. "My review is not conditioned on them being on work or off of work."
Caldwell said the Police Department has completed its investigation of the matter and forwarded a report to him.
"I've had the report for 10 days or so," he said. "So from a Police Department point of view, the investigation is basically over - barring anything that comes to light subsequently."
Caldwell said he expects to announce his decision on the Lee case this week.
Hooper said the officers will not be reassigned following Holt's complaint. "It's not a critical incident," he said.
by CNB