The police chief of Bull Shoals pleaded innocent Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Harrison to three charges related to accusations he used excessive force during a July 9, 2013, arrest.
According to an indictment, Police Chief Daniel Sutterfield "kicked and stomped" Nicholas Dore, struck him in the head with the butt of a shotgun, threw Dore into a fireplace and wall, and repeatedly shocked him with a stun gun, all while Dore was in handcuffs.
After an FBI investigation, Sutterfield was charged with depriving Dore of his rights and trying to cover it up by instructing an officer to falsify records by omitting any reference to the use of force against Dore.
Sutterfield's jury trial is scheduled to begin Tuesday in Harrison.
Federal attorneys filed a motion July 2 saying they have evidence that Sutterfield committed similar acts against two people in 2012.
"Sutterfield attempted to use force against a handcuffed suspect ... and he needlessly tased a handcuffed arrestee," according to the filing from Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyra Jenner of Fort Smith and trial attorney Cindy Chung of Washington, D.C.
Evidence that Sutterfield committed similar acts in the past could help prove criminal intent, according to Jenner and Chung.
Sutterfield's attorney filed a response Monday saying accusations that the chief used or attempted to use excessive force during two arrests in 2012 shouldn't be admitted as evidence.
Bruce Eddy, the federal public defender representing Sutterfield, argued that there isn't sufficient evidence to prove that Sutterfield committed the acts in 2012.
Jenner and Chung responded to Eddy's filing Tuesday, saying "eyewitness accounts" of Sutterfield's actions meet the legal requirements of admission as evidence.
"These incidents are sufficiently similar, sufficiently supported and relevant," wrote Jenner and Chung.
The 2013 arrest occurred after a woman filed a domestic violence complaint with the Bull Shoals Police Department against Dore, who was her live-in boyfriend.
Metro on 07/09/2014