Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, September 24, 1993 TAG: 9309240168
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Carl Simmons had claimed in a $13 million lawsuit that Officer R.J. Scott shot him for no reason during a traffic stop the night of Feb. 3, 1992.
But after hearing three days of testimony in U.S. District Court in Roanoke, the jury found that Scott did not violate Simmons' civil rights by using excessive force.
With no independent eyewitnesses or conclusive forensic evidence, the trial pitted the testimony of a man who fled police against that of an experienced police officer.
In three hours of testimony, Scott described how Simmons sped away from his flashing blue lights and then reached for what Scott thought was a weapon after Simmons finally stopped at 10th Street and Howbert Avenue Southwest.
Scott said his revolver went off accidentally when Simmons grabbed the gun; Simmons said it discharged as the angry officer tapped it on Simmons' rolled-down car window.
"Exactly how the gun discharged: That's something we will never know," jury foreman Herbert E. Maxey said after the trial.
"But the evidence was enough to show the officer was doing his duty - maybe not perfectly, but that's just the way it worked out," Maxey said.
Had the jury found Scott used excessive force, the trial would have entered a second phase to determine if the city of Roanoke was to blame for failing to supervise Scott, given prior complaints of excessive force against him.
The jury did not hear that Scott had been reprimanded or suspended seven times since 1981 for using excessive force. Even if the jury had known that, Maxey said, it probably would not have influenced its decision in Simmons' case.
Jurors also did not hear details of Scott Simmons' prior criminal record, which includes convictions for altering price tags and taking indecent liberties.
Throughout the trial, defense attorneys William Rakes and Greg Haley stressed that Simmons - in trouble and on the run - was responsible for what happened.
"The one individual who could have avoided all of this was Mr. Simmons," Rakes told the jury.
Simmons was unarmed at the time he was shot. But minutes later, police found a hunting knife under the driver's seat and cocaine in his car.
Although the trial was essentially a credibility contest between Simmons and Scott, Rakes pointed to several pieces of evidence that corroborated the officer's account:
Scott was treated for a sprained finger after the shooting, lending credence to his story of being involved in a hand-to-hand struggle for his gun. Simmons denied grabbing the gun.
A woman testified that after being roused from watching television by the sound of sirens the night of the shooting, she looked out her living room window and saw Scott stepping from his patrol car. He did not have his gun drawn, she testified - contradicting Simmons' account of how the officer had his gun in the air as he jumped from his car.
A taped recording of Scott's radio conversation with a 911 dispatcher confirmed there was a chase of almost a mile, during which Simmons threw objects from his car and stopped at least once to curse Scott. Simmons said there was no chase.
Blood splatters were found on the inside of driver's door frame - casting doubt on Simmons' testimony that the door was shut when he was shot.
Police Chief M. David Hooper said he believed the jury's verdict was "absolutely correct." He said Scott, who has remained on the force since the shooting, will continue his normal duties.
Simmons' attorneys questioned why police did not check the gun for fingerprints, given reports of a struggle over the weapon.
Jurors said they, too, had concerns about how parts of the investigation were handled, but said that was not an issue they were asked to resolve.
"I don't think it was a coverup," Maxey said. "But I think it was poorly handled."
Simmons, who is from Hampton, was left partially blind and deaf from the shooting. He said after the verdict that he will try to get on with his life, despite having no insurance and no way to pay his rising medical bills.
"I don't have a dime," he said.
by CNB