Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Trial Begins for Deputy Schene Accused of Beating 15-year-old

The assault trial began Tuesday in King County Superior Court for a man accused of beating a 15-year-old girl in a holding cell at the SeaTac City Hall.

She was a car theft suspect who was taken down violently in November 2008 after she kicked a shoe at Deputy Paul Schene. The incident was caught on video. Schene was fired last September.

Prosecutors played the tape in court and said Schene had failed to report slamming the girl into a wall, throwing her to the floor and striking her.

A defense lawyer says the girl provoked the attack with her behavior and yelling profanity.

Investigators believe that anger about the beating might have motivated Christopher Monfort who is accused of killing a Seattle police officer.

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Officer Jason Potteiger Fired After Investigation

A Leipsic police officer has been fired after an investigation indicated he was observed away from his assignment several times.

The Putnam County Sentinel reports Jason Potteiger's police cruiser was seen several times parked outside a residence during times when he was on patrol.

Police Chief Dennis Cupp says the infraction was observed for periods of as much as eight hours on six occasions during December.

Potteiger was originally placed on 90 days probation, but was terminated by mayor Kevin Benton after he received the report.
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Officer Jerry Pendley Arrested for Lying on Job Application

An Oklahoma police officer was arrested for lying to the federal government after authorities say he falsified a job application. The allegations stem from when Luther police officer Jerry Pendley went to work as a security officer at a federal building.

"I guess they don't have anything better to do at Homeland Security now," Pendley's attorney Robert Manchester said. "They have to find somebody to show they're doing something."

According to Manchester, Pendley is that somebody; agents arrested him Monday night on two federal charges.

Court records show Pendley failed to mention previous criminal charges on his employment application when he applied for a security position at our state's federal building.

Records say he was arrested for assault and battery more than once and was charged with carrying a concealed weapon.

Authorities also say he lied about why he left his former places of employment; allegations his attorney says are blown out of proportion.

"It's foolishness. It is a tempest in the teapot," Manchester said. "They've taken a mole hill and tried to make it into a mountain and my client's the fall guy."

Manchester says Pendley got a phone call from an OHP trooper telling him he needed to meet him at a gas station.

That's when they informed Pendley of a warrant for his arrest and took him into custody.

"They didn't want to talk to him," Manchester said. "They wanted to arrest him."

Pendley has been an officer at the Luther Police Department for about three weeks and the chief says he passed their background check.

"The short time he was here he was an excellent officer," Chief C.O. Moore said.

Pendley was employed at the Federal Building from 2005 to 2009; four years his attorney says went unnoticed until now.

"Do they do background investigations?" Manchester said. "What have they been doing? Why is this suddenly a burning issue with them?"

Luther police say there will be a meeting Wednesday to decide how to handle Pendley's employment with the department.

Pendley has been released from jail on bond.
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Former Officer Timothy Radogna Sentenced for Grand Theft

A former Glendora police officer pleaded no contest today to grand theft and possessing methamphetamine.

Timothy Radogna, 34, was sentenced to 180 days in county jail and three years of probation and ordered to complete a 24-month drug rehabilitation program, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.

He could have received a maximum term of nine years and eight months in state prison.

Radogna was arrested in May after he was accused of stealing hundreds of dollars from the Glendora Police Department and possessing drugs.

Radgona was also ordered to repay $500 to the department, authorities said.

Corrections Officer Thaddeus Boston Arrested for Choking Fiancee

A Charlotte County corrections officer was arrested in North Port today on domestic violence charges.

Thaddeus Boston, 32, faces domestic battery and false imprisonment charges after allegedly choking and hitting his 26-year-old fiancee in the 4000 block of Manila Avenue Tuesday.

The couple was reportedly quarrelling when Boston attacked her. She ran to a neighbor's house and called 911 shortly after 9:30 a.m.

Boston was booked and released from the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office.

Deputy Charles Ray Mistric Charged with Malfeasance in Office

An employee with the St Landry Parish Sheriff's Department was arrested Monday after allegations that he mishandled an inmate.

TV 10 spoke with Sheriff Bobby Guidroz about the arrest, and what new safeguards will be put in place so this never happens again.

The Sheriff says that the man arrested was a corrections officer working in the St Landry Parish Jail. He was arrested after allegedly touching a female inmate inappropriately.

Sixty one year old Charles Ray Mistric, was arrested Monday and charged with malfeasance in office. Sheriff Guidroz says Mistric resigned from his deputy position before he was arrested.

A female inmate alleges that Mistric inappropriately touched her as he escorted her to use the phone. An investigation led to the correction officers arrest. The sheriff says safeguards will now be put in place to stop this from happening in the future.

"We have a new policy in place that if a female wants to make a call, she'll be escorted by a female, vice-versa. We've taken some steps to improve, that I thought were already in place, but were not" says Guidroz.

Mistric had only been an employee with the sheriff's department for about ten months. The alleged incident took place over the past weekend.
Misdemeanor assault charges have been filed against an off-duty Chicago police officer who was arrested Tuesday after he became combative with officers who responded to a shooting inside his Southwest Side home.

Citing union contract restrictions, police declined to identify the officer, who has been freed on bail.

The shooting happened in the officer's home in the 10700 block of South Troy Street at about 4:45 a.m. Tuesday, according to a statement from Chicago police. The officer phoned 911 to report that a man had been shot in the head inside the home, police said.

The victim was taken to an area hospital in critical condition.

The officer's weapon was used in the shooting, said a law-enforcement source, who indicated the victim was a friend of the officer's.

Another source said the officer told police the victim had grabbed his gun and shot himself in the head.The department is continuing to investigate the shooting, and tests are pending, the source said.

Chicago detectives, the department's Internal Affairs Division and the Independent Police Review Authority are investigating the incident.

The officer, a veteran of six years on the force, has been stripped of his police powers.
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