Deputies prevail in Taser lawsuit

Pre-verdict deal costs 1 $225,000

Shortly before a federal jury delivered a verdict Tuesday in favor of two Pope County sheriff's deputies accused of using excessive force on a Dover mother and son in 2011, one of the deputies agreed to pay the family $225,000.

The settlement offered by an attorney for Deputy Kristopher Stevens, who used a Taser on the boy several times -- with the number of times being a point of contention during a six-day trial -- mooted the verdict that was delivered an hour later.

But the verdict in favor of the other deputy, Steven Payton, who stopped the mother and son while they walked their dog near their home on the night of Sept. 13, 2011, stood.

Keith Wren, the Little Rock attorney who represented Payton, said afterward that he and Payton also had a brief discussion with the plaintiffs' attorney, Pat James of Little Rock, about an hour before the verdict was delivered, but declined to settle.

"It was our decision that we've come this far and we're going to let the jury decide," Wren said. He noted that Payton, who remains with the sheriff's office, "was incredibly relieved" upon hearing the verdict.

Wren said that over the past 21/2 years, as the case lingered in the court system, "It was our position that we were not going to try our case in the press." As a result, Wren said, news coverage of the case, which was especially intense in Pope County, focused more on the family's side than the deputies' side.

Now that the deputies have had a chance to tell their side of the story, Wren said, they were glad that "the truth has come out."

Stevens, he noted, has since moved on from the sheriff's office, where he was a sergeant at the time of the incident, to work for the Atkins Police Department.

James, who represented Ronald Robinson, 53, his wife Eva Robinson, 49, and their son, Matthew, who was 16 at the time of the incident and is now 20, said the family was especially glad after hearing the verdict that they had accepted Stevens' settlement offer. It was negotiated as jurors deliberated on the excessive-force claims, for which the family had sought more than $1 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

Still, James said, "They're obviously disappointed" that jurors sided with the officers instead of the family. But, he said, "I will tell you there was satisfaction at finally being heard in court."

James added that while Stevens didn't admit liability, "Obviously, you don't pay that kind of money" unless you have concerns about losing.

The money is expected to be paid on the county's behalf by the Arkansas Public Entities Risk Management Association, through which attorney Burt Newell of Hot Springs represented Stevens. Newell couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday afternoon.

Holly Dickson, legal director for the Arkansas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, which supported the plaintiffs, said after the verdict that the facts brought out at the trial illustrate the need for a state law enforcement standards office that the public can turn to for help. The ACLU has advocated the creation of such an office since joining the family in July 2013 to announce the filing of an amended lawsuit.

The family originally filed suit in 2012, but amended the suit after criminal charges stemming from the incident were resolved at the local level, with Eva Robinson being cleared of any wrongdoing and Matthew Robinson being declared delinquent in juvenile court for failing to submit to arrest.

Rita Sklar, executive director of the ACLU's Arkansas chapter, said in 2013 that it was time for the formation of an independent agency in Arkansas to investigate complaints about police, and for police agencies across the state to take a "community" rather than "military" approach with their residents.

Dickson said Tuesday that "the police are supposed to protect and serve the public, but when they don't, they need to be held accountable."

In a news release, she said, "The brutality that Eva and Matthew endured shows us that something is wrong with the way Arkansas police are trained. We need to ensure that all police officers in this state are trained to act in a manner that respects people and their constitutional rights."

Dickson added, "The encounter changed everything about how the Robinsons feel about their safety in their own home and community. As the federal jury chose not to hold Deputy Payton accountable, the Robinson family vows to continue working for a system that [provides] better resources and professionalizes police."

She said the Robinsons "had no one to complain to when the police agencies responsible denied any wrongdoing. The officers who beat them up are still on the streets today."

In testimony at the trial before Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Miller, Stevens emphasized that the Robinsons weren't struck, hit or punched during the encounter, although he acknowledged using a Taser gun six times to subdue Matthew Robinson, with Payton's help. The plaintiffs complained that data from the Taser were "lost" before the trial that would have shown that the device was used on Robinson more than six times.

Each side blamed the other for escalating a harmless situation into a major event.

The encounter began when Eva and Matthew Robinson were walking their dog a little after 9 on a Tuesday night. Payton said he stopped them to ensure nothing was wrong after first noticing the tall boy, who appeared to be a grown man, approaching the small woman, and then seeing the boy act "suspiciously,"as though trying to hide something.

The mother and son, indignant at being questioned by police while walking their dog, initially refused to give their names or otherwise cooperate, prompting Payton to summon backup officers, including Stevens.

Stevens said that after he arrived at the scene, he used a Taser on Matthew Robinson for not getting out of Payton's patrol car when told to do so. The two officers said they forced the teen out of the car and to the ground in an effort to see his hands and ensure he didn't have a weapon.

Meanwhile, the officers said, Eva Robinson screamed continuously and tried to keep her son away from the officers. Her screams caught the attention of her husband, who came running from the family's house.

The family contended that the repeated use of the Taser left Matthew Robinson, a member of his high school's football team, with a cyst on his lower back that became infected and had to be surgically repaired. However, the family provided no medical testimony, while the defendants presented medical records indicating the teen had suffered for years from various skin lesions and that the cyst in question probably resulted from ingrown hairs.

Metro on 10/07/2015

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