CONWAY -- The Faulkner County sheriff's office has given the prosecutor's office a criminal-investigation report on deputies' conduct during the May arrests of two men accused of leading officers on a high-speed car chase during which shots were fired at police.
Prosecuting Attorney Cody Hiland said Tuesday that his office has begun reviewing the report submitted by Sheriff Andy Shock's office Monday. The prosecutor's office will decide whether felony charges are warranted against any of the deputies as a result of excessive force.
"I expect to have a decision within a couple weeks," Hiland said.
One of the deputies, Eugene Watlington, was fired Friday for using excessive force against one of the suspects, Harvey Martin, during the arrest. That arrest was videotaped by a Mayflower police officer who also joined the chase.
The arrest of the other suspect, Christopher Cummings, was not caught on video.
The sheriff's office said Watlington "engaged in gratuitous" kicking of Martin, while other deputies struggled to restrain the suspect.
Three other deputies remain on administrative leave, Shock said Tuesday.
The sheriff said he is reviewing an internal investigation and expects to announce a decision on those deputies by the end of the week.
The sheriff's office said last week that it would be working with federal authorities to determine whether the deputies' actions rose "to the level of a federal civil rights violation." The FBI has declined comment.
Martin and Cummings were taken to the Conway hospital, where they were treated and released. Shock has described their injuries as minor and involving scrapes and bruises.
The May 4 chase from Mayflower to Conway began after deputies stopped the men's car. Authorities said the driver pulled over but then fled. The pursuit reached speeds of about 125 mph, and authorities said Cummings, who was Martin's passenger, used a 9mm pistol to fire numerous rounds at police. Bullets struck patrol vehicles but not the officers.
Deputies had the men's vehicle and another car under surveillance at a Valero service station near Interstate 40 in Mayflower before the chase began.
State Desk on 07/15/2015