The North Little Rock Police Department paid a man $30,000 and asked for his felony charges to be dropped in return for an agreement not to sue the city after the man was injured during a 2018 traffic stop, documents show.
Kristopher Ryan Lamar, 44, of North Little Rock was injured Aug. 27 during an arrest in which officer Jon Crowder restrained Lamar’s arms behind his back and lifted them over Lamar’s head, fracturing bones in Lamar’s elbows. Crowder was arrested Thursday on a charge of third-degree battery.
On Nov. 8, North Little Rock Assistant City Attorney Michael Mosley and Lamar signed a settlement agreement that stipulates Lamar will not file any claim or suit against the city, any police officers or any city employee related to the August arrest.
In return, the city paid Lamar $30,000 from the Police Department’s budget, City Attorney Amy Fields said. Fields she was unable specify the source further.
The city also requested that Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney Larry Jegley drop charges of felony possession of drug paraphernalia and theft by receiving against Lamar as a part of the agreement.
The settlement was not filed with any court or agency.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Friday obtained a copy of the agreement and of a recorded conversation between Mosley and Lamar through an Arkansas Freedom of Information Act request.
When asked Friday whether the city settled the matter with Lamar, Mayor Joe Smith said he could not recall particulars of the case and referred questions to the police chief.
“I don’t want to lie to you, I don’t remember,” Smith said. “I know we’ve talked about the incident over the past number of months, but I can’t tell you. That may have gone through our legal department. I just don’t know. … Call Chief [Mike] Davis. He would know.”
After the city attorney’s office released the settlement papers to the Democrat-Gazette, the mayor did not return a second request seeking further comment.
Crowder stopped Lamar in a car about 10:30 a.m. Aug. 27, minutes after police were called about a stolen credit card at the Super Stay at 515 W. Pershing Blvd., according to a police report.
A man told police that morning that his stolen credit card had been used at the hotel about 4 a.m., and that a stolen vehicle may be in the hotel’s parking lot.
When Lamar stopped the vehicle, Crowder stepped out of his patrol unit and said, “Step out,” according to dashboard-camera footage of the incident that was released Thursday.
Lamar said something unintelligible and stuck one hand out of the window. Crowder told him again to get out of the car while aiming his department-issued firearm at Lamar, the video showed. Lamar opened the door of the car, which rolled forward, and Crowder told Lamar to put it in park first.
“Put your hands on the car,” Crowder said. “Do you have any guns?”
“No,” Lamar said, turning to face the officer.
“Put your hands on the car,” Crowder yelled, grabbing Lamar and pushing him down on the trunk of the car.
“For what?” Lamar said as the officer pulled Lamar’s hands behind his back.
“For what?” Crowder said. “I’m in a police car and you’re trying to get away from me.”
“No, I’m not,” Lamar said.
The officer began placing handcuffs on Lamar’s wrists and searching Lamar’s pockets, one of which contained a pair of handcuffs.
“Why do you have handcuffs?” Crowder asked. “Why do you have handcuffs?”
“Because I’m f *g kinky, dude,” Lamar said.
Crowder grabbed Lamar’s handcuffed wrists and hoisted them into the air as Lamar began to scream.
“You better stay still, brother,” Crowder said. “If you don’t stay still, I can’t pat you down.”
Officers also found an unused syringe and a stolen credit card in Lamar’s pockets, according to a case file submitted to the prosecuting attorney’s office.
The police report said Lamar refused medical treatment initially, but later told police his arms hurt. An officer transported him to Baptist Health Medical Center in North Little Rock, where a doctor said bones in Lamar’s elbows were broken.
Lamar was charged with theft of property and possession of drug paraphernalia, both felonies, according to court records.
Fields said Lamar later asked the Police Department to pay for his medical bills, and department officials notified the city attorney’s office.
“The settlement was for any claims that he might make against the city,” Fields said. “He released all claims against us. He came to us and was seeking money. … We were able to reach a settlement with Mr. Lamar without the necessity of litigation.”
On Nov. 6, Lamar and his wife met with Mosley to discuss Lamar’s medical bills and the lasting effects of his injuries, according to a recording of the 10-minute conversation released Friday.
“In speaking with the city administration and in speaking to my boss, the city attorney, the city would like to resolve this if possible with you, short of litigation,” Mosley said. “One thing that we can do is ask Larry Jegley’s office to dismiss the charges against you as part of this. One thing we can do is pay your medical bills.”
Mosley said in the recording that Lamar’s medical bills were approximately $600, and Lamar said he had a bill of around $1,200.
“I just want my life back,” Lamar said during the conversation. “I’d like to be able to get my arms back, too. Whatever it takes to do that. I just want our lives back.”
Mosley said he was authorized to offer Lamar $5,000, but said Lamar would have to sign the settlement before he would be paid.
“You may need additional medical attention in the future,” Mosley said. “I can get that check done quickly. It would prevent you from filing a lawsuit against the city or its employees. In addition to that, I can have a representative of the city ask Larry Jegley’s office, the elected prosecutor for this district, to drop the charge against you and the refusal to submit, which is a misdemeanor. That’s what I’m prepared to put on the table initially. Do you have any thoughts about that?”
Lamar said he would need time to think about the offer. Two days later, he signed an agreement and the city issued him a check for $30,000, according to a copy of the check.
Fields referred further questions about the source of the money to the police chief.
“There were funds budgeted within the Police Department that were available,” Fields said.
Davis, the police chief, verified through a spokesman that the money came from the department’s professional services budget. In 2018, the department had a budget of $23 million, Davis said.
A copy of the settlement said the city “will request the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for the Sixth Judicial District to dismiss any and all charges against [Lamar] stemming from the events that occurred in North Little Rock, Arkansas on or about August 27, 2018.”
The case against Lamar was not dropped. He negotiated a guilty plea to both felony charges and was sentenced to serve five years of probation starting Feb. 7.
Jegley said Friday that he refused the request to drop charges against Lamar because the evidence against Lamar was enough to convict him.
“I’ll get a request to look at something, but I’m not in the business of settling cases of civil liability for anybody,” Jegley said. “We had already filed the case. We’d a l re a dy re - viewed what got sent over to us and filed the case in circuit court. I just didn’t feel comfortable … I didn’t feel like that was something that this office was willing to do.”
Jegley said it was unique in his experience for a city attorney to offer to request to drop the charges against a suspect in a felony case.
“That’s not the city attorney’s authority,” Jegley said. “I’m the prosecuting attorney. City attorneys can ask, but they don’t have any authority to say whether we go forward or not.”
Crowder was found to have violated department policy in the arrest and was suspended for 30 days starting Oct. 25, according to a news release from the Police Department. On May 20, Jegley’s office notified Davis that Crowder would face criminal charges, and the officer was placed on modified duty, the release said.
A criminal investigation was initiated after Jegely’s office said that it intended to pursue charges, and the file was turned over to the prosecuting attorney’s office Wednesday, the release said.
A warrant was issued the next day for Crowder’s arrest on a charge of third-degree battery, a misdemeanor, according to the release.
