The Little Rock police officer fired after a February officer-involved shooting will resume appealing his termination on Sept. 4, more than a month after the first day of his hearing came to an abrupt halt, a Little Rock city spokesman said.
Officer Charles Starks will continue trying to regain his position as a Little Rock police officer at 8 a.m. on Sept. 4 at a Civil Service Commission hearing, Little Rock Human Resources Director Stacey Witherell said Wednesday.
Starks was fired on May 6 after an internal investigation found that he had violated department policy on Feb. 22, when he shot Little Rock resident Bradley Blackshire eight times during a traffic stop, killing him. Blackshire, who was driving a stolen vehicle, struck Starks twice with the vehicle during the stop, injuring the officer's knee.
The first day of Starks' hearing, July 25, was chaotic, with more than two dozen police officers posted around City Hall, allegations of Mayor Frank Scott Jr. pressuring the department to fire Starks and an unsubstantiated report of shots fired in the building.
The hearing was scheduled to continue on July 26, but was delayed after Starks' attorney fell down City Hall's stone stairway, breaking his wrist. Lawyer Robert Newcomb underwent surgery days after the fall and said Wednesday that he is now returning to a normal work schedule.
The Police Department's representatives, attorneys Khayyam Eddings and Michael Moore, called their witnesses during the first day of proceedings, which lasted more than eight hours.
Despite the length of time between the first and second hearings, Moore said he does not feel that there will be a need to provide a synopsis for the commissioners.
"I don't know that we'll have to spend any time re-orienting them," he said. "I think they'll remember fine."
The majority of the witnesses in the remainder of the hearing will be Newcomb's. He said Wednesday that he plans to call six or more witnesses who have a variety of backgrounds. Among them are officers in Starks' chain of command, several training officers and one of the other officers who first responded to the Feb. 22 shooting.
"All these people basically are saying that [Starks] did what he was trained to do, that this is what they might have done, too," Newcomb said.
Moore said they have not decided what witnesses -- if any -- the city will call for rebuttal.
In the first day of the hearing, Newcomb argued that the former officer had reacted to a difficult situation by relying on his department training. Witnesses and attorneys for the Police Department said Starks violated department policy when he stepped in front of a moving vehicle.
Assistant Chief Hayward Finks testified under oath in the hearing that Scott put "pressure" on the internal investigation and pushed for Starks to be fired. Finks said pressure from the mayor's office caused some facets of the investigation to be rushed or incomplete.
Assistant Chief Alice Fulk said in her testimony that Scott asked on the day of the shooting whether Starks could be fired immediately. Fulk said she and interim Police Chief Wayne Bewley explained to the mayor that an officer can be terminated only after an investigation and administrative hearing.
A ban on electronic recording, which the commission had put in place 48 hours before the hearing last month, was rescinded at City Attorney Tom Carpenter's recommendation. Experts at the time called the ban a violation of the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.
The commission has not met since July 25. Two regularly-scheduled commission meetings set for Aug. 8 and Aug. 22 were canceled, Little Rock Administrative Operations Manager Kelly M. Shepard said.
The Civil Service Commission is a panel of seven citizens that oversees employee and candidate appeals for the Little Rock Police Department and Little Rock Fire Department.
Shepard said the commission -- which also oversees personnel policy, merit system rules and regulations, and promotions -- did not have any regular business to handle for those meeting times.
Starks' firing came three weeks after Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney Larry Jegley decided not to prosecute Starks. Jegley's letter to Police Chief Keith Humphrey said the officer was in fear for his life when Blackshire drove the stolen Nissan Altima toward him in a parking lot and Starks' use of force was justified.
Each of the officers in Starks' chain of command -- beginning with his direct supervisor and ending with Finks -- believed Starks should have been exonerated.
Humphrey, who has the final say in hiring and firing decisions at the department, fired Starks.
Scott repeatedly declined to comment on the allegation that he pressured the investigation, saying he did not wish to speak about an ongoing civil service hearing.
Metro on 08/15/2019