CONWAY -- A federal grand jury has been investigating Faulkner County sheriff's deputies' arrests of two men after a high-speed chase marked by gunfire and a videotaped encounter showing one of the men being kicked and punched repeatedly, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette confirmed Tuesday.
The FBI, the U.S. attorney's office and the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division have been conducting a civil-rights color-of-law investigation of the May 4 arrests of Harvey Martin III, 46, and Christopher Cummings, 29, to determine whether deputies used excessive force.
Responding to a request under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, the sheriff's office on Tuesday released copies of a subpoena ordering it to turn over records related to five current or former deputies who were involved in Martin's arrest after a traffic stop and chase from Mayflower to Conway.
The subpoena, dated Aug. 31, also ordered the sheriff's office to submit all materials "resulting from incidents occurring between" March and June and involving Martin and Cummings. The county had until Oct. 6 to give the documents to the U.S. attorney's office in Little Rock.
Mayflower police officer Dalton Elliott, who joined sheriff's deputies in pursuing Cummings and Martin after they fled the traffic stop near Interstate 40, used a body camera to videotape Martin's capture. Elliott did not record Cummings' arrest, which took place a short distance away.
The Democrat-Gazette has learned that a civilian apparently videotaped Cummings' arrest.
Authorities have said Cummings, who is charged with attempted capital murder and other offenses, was the one who fired gunshots at the deputies' cars. Charges against Martin, who was driving the vehicle, were dropped after prosecutors said Cummings forced Martin to flee police.
Cummings and Martin were treated for injuries at a Conway hospital and released to the sheriff's office that night. No deputies were hurt.
Faulkner County Attorney David Hogue said Tuesday that he did not know if the case was still before the grand jury. Sheriff Matt Rice, who took over the office Sept. 1, has said the FBI's investigation is ongoing.
Current or former deputies specified in the subpoena were Eugene Watlington, Martin Clifford, Darrell Freeman, Brint Romley and Chris Meyers.
Former Sheriff Andy Shock, who left the office to take a seat on the state Board of Parole, fired Watlington for using what Shock determined was excessive force. Rice fired Clifford in December over an unrelated driving-while-intoxicated arrest.
The subpoena did not mention Deputy Bill Kenney, who was involved in Cummings' arrest and who was among the deputies placed on temporary administrative leave during an internal investigation.
In addition to Watlington, Shock placed Freeman, Clifford and Kenney on leave after the arrests but allowed all but Watlington to return to the job. Shock said at the time that the others had "acted within their scope of the use of force policy."
Neither Romley nor Meyers was placed on leave.
The federal subpoena requested a wide range of records, including documents, logs, in-car recordings, photographs, videos, audiotapes, 911 recordings, incident reports, printed-out text messages and emails, use-of-force and arrest reports, "and any and all investigative material."
The subpoena also asked for work rosters and schedules for May 4-5 and for personnel files for the five current or former deputies.
Elliott, the Mayflower officer who recorded the video, and 12 deputies who were present for the arrests declined to answer questions without an attorney present during the sheriff's internal investigation, records show.
Elliott is a former sheriff's deputy who was not rehired when Shock took office.
A review of documents previously obtained by the Democrat-Gazette also indicates there may be a videotape of Cummings' arrest.
According to a report filed by Conway police officer Matthew Boyd, Boyd noticed a woman who "appeared to be filming the arrest [of Cummings] and I later observed her walking away from the area where the vehicles had stopped."
"I asked her for her information so that a copy of the video could be obtained if needed," Boyd wrote.
He identified her as Latotianna Taylor, 26.
In another report, Conway officer Dellwyn Elkins said he also noticed the woman.
"An unknown Deputy began screaming at her to 'get the f back' and 'get that f*** camera out of here,'" Elkins wrote.
Elkins said he advised an officer to talk with her. "I was attempting to tell the Deputies that she was allowed to film and that we just needed to move her further back when he noticed" a fellow Conway officer standing by the deputies and went to speak with him, Elkins wrote.
Taylor does not have a phone listing in Conway directory assistance and could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Hogue, the county attorney, said in an email that Rice "explained that the [sheriff's] department was told there was such a video but they've never been able to find one."
It was not known late Tuesday whether the Conway Police Department has a copy of that tape. Police spokesman LaTresha Woodruff said she was fairly certain the department had never located the woman or the video but that she would check further.
Boyd's report also recounted his observations after he joined deputies' efforts to subdue Cummings.
"As I jumped in and started pulling on [Cummings'] left arm which was tucked under him I observed [that] several of the deputies" were striking him on his left side, Boyd wrote.
"I also observed an unknown deputy that was wearing plain clothes with a black tactical vest, holding a rifle, kick the subject in the head and face," Boyd added.
Boyd said he managed to pin Cummings' left arm "to the ground away from his body while somebody else pulled out his right arm."
"I noticed that the deputy that was kicking [Cummings] was still doing so and I moved my body around to the right to block the kicks. At this point the Deputy was still kicking at the subject but was striking me instead on my right side," Boyd said.
Boyd said he was not hurt.
A third Conway officer, Danny Worley, also noticed the woman who appeared to be recording the arrest.
"I did not say anything to her because she was a safe distance from us and out of the way. I did see a couple of Deputies talking to her later but did not hear the conversation that took place," Worley wrote in his report.
Conway police officer Larry Hearn Jr. said he obtained a copy of the Mayflower officer's body-camera video later that day.
Shock, asked when he first saw the video, said Tuesday that he needed to check to see whether it was OK to talk with reporters since he no longer is sheriff.
Mayflower Police Chief Robert Alcon was out of the office Tuesday afternoon and unavailable for comment.
A Section on 01/20/2016