Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, September 23, 1993 TAG: 9309230099
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"I did not intend to fire the gun," Officer R.J. Scott testified. "I regret that this happened."
When the jury returns to federal court today, it will resume deliberating whether Scott's actions were an accident or a case of excessive force.
Simmons, of Hampton, claims in a lawsuit that Scott shot him for no reason as he sat in his car after a brief chase through the Wasena neighborhood the night of Feb. 3, 1992.
During nearly three hours of testimony, Scott told a different story:
Scott said he noticed Simmons on Brighton Avenue, driving with his headlights off. That led to a chase of less than a mile, during which Simmons tossed some objects from the car and stopped long enough to curse at him, Scott testified.
When the car stopped at 10th Street and Howbert Avenue, Scott testified, he was approaching the driver's side when he saw Simmons lean across the seat.
"In view of the circumstances I had already seen, I had reason to believe he had a weapon," Scott testified.
At that point, he drew his revolver. Simmons - who, as it turned out, was not armed - then grabbed the gun and it went off during the struggle, Scott said.
Scott said he could not recall whether Scott grabbed the gun with one hand or both, or who actually pulled the trigger.
The bullet struck Simmons on the left side of his face. A second shot, which Scott described as a "reflex shot" struck the side of the car as it rolled forward.
When police searched the car after the shooting, they found cocaine on the passenger's seat and a hunting knife on the floorboard.
With no independent eyewitnesses and little physical evidence, lawyers on both sides agree that the case amounts to a credibility contest between a police officer and a criminal suspect.
While attorneys for Scott have sought to discredit Simmons' character, the jury heard evidence Wednesday that raised questions about the police officer's credibility.
Under cross-examination, Scott admitted that he had omitted important details from a police report of a 1987 incident in which he choked a teen-ager who was bound hand and foot.
Scott was reprimanded in that case for using excessive force.
It was just one of a half-dozen reprimands or suspensions he has received since 1981 for using excessive force, according to court records.
But the jury will not hear about those cases unless if finds that excessive force was used during Simmons' arrest.
If it does, the trial will enter a second phase to determine if the city of Roanoke was to blame for failing to supervise and monitor Scott, given his past record.
Judge Jackson Kiser has ruled that the prior complaints of excessive force against Scott have no bearing on Simmons' claim. But he allowed the jury to hear about Scott's misleading report in the choking case because it goes to his credibility as a witness.
"He has lied about what has happened in the past," Oldric LaBell, Simmons' attorney, told the jury. "And he's not giving you the truth this time."
by CNB