Friday, March 28, 2008
An Arkansas State Police trooper with a history of "unacceptable" and "unprofessional" behavior in his dealings with the public was suspended and reassigned to administrative work earlier this month after a run-in with a journalist late last year, agency documents show.
A state police review board recommended against any discipline but found that Trooper Thomas Weindruch used "poor judgment" in handcuffing the Stephens Media reporter/photographer Bill Lawson and citing him with a misdemeanor.
Noting Weindruch's disciplinary history, however, state police Director Col. Winford Phillips disagreed and suspended him.
Several agency documents were obtained by Arkansas Democrat-Gazette staff. The PDFs below include the original arrest report, excerpts from interviews with Lawson and Weindruch, and the audio transcript from the night of the clash.