The Adobe Flash Player is required to view this multimedia interactive. Get it here.

Lawsuit over Tasing on handicapped 17-year-old pits differing stories

Man, 68, drowns at Caesar Creek Lake
5/26/12
Water rescues prompt warning from health officials
5/25/12
Beach Waterpark sued for failure to deliver
5/25/12
Raleigh Trammell’s defense opens in felony trial
5/25/12
UD to move satellite campus to Dublin
5/25/12
> More headlines

By Doug Page and Lou Grieco, Staff Writers 3:05 PM Friday, July 1, 2011

DAYTON — A mother and her mentally challenged son are suing the city and two police officers, claiming they assaulted the boy after mistaking his speech impediment for disrespect.

The initial police incident report and a 22-page use of force report tell a different story of police officers struggling not only with the son, but his mother and a family friend.

The lawsuit requests a minimum of $250,000 in compensation, plus damages and legal fees.

The lawsuit, filed June 24 by Pamela Ford and Jesse Kersey, claims that Officer Willie Hooper knew Kersey was mentally handicapped and a minor before he encountered the boy on June 25, 2010, at the corner of Andrews Street and St. Paul Avenue.

The 17-year-old was riding his bicycle when Hooper tried to talk with him. But Hooper became angry and started yelling at Kersey, so the boy rode his bike home so he could ask his mother to communicate with Hooper for him, the lawsuit states.

Hooper chased the boy back to his home, where he met with Officer John Howard. At one point, a neighbor tried to tell Hooper about Kersey’s disabilities, but was told to go back into his home or he would be arrested, the lawsuit states.

The officers shot Kersey in the back with their Tasers as he opened his front door. They fought with him, and during the struggle, the officers struck him with fists and a retractable nightstick and pepper-sprayed him, then hog-tied him, the lawsuit states.

“Jesse was declared incompetent by the Montgomery County Juvenile Court and the charges against Jesse were dismissed,” the lawsuit states.

According to the police incident report, Hooper first saw the boy, later identified as Kersey, riding his bike the wrong way down on Andrews Street. When Kersey spotted the police cruiser he started riding on the sidewalk. When Hooper yelled for Kersey to stop, the boy took off up St. Paul Avenue, dumping his bike in front of his house. Finding the front door lock, Kersey turned on Hooper, who had mounted the front porch to issue Kersey a bicycle citation, and began to struggle, according to the police report. “Kersey started swinging his arms at Officer Hooper and yelling in an unintelligible language,” according to the police report.

An attempt to Tase the struggling boy, who was described as 6-foot-1 and 160 pounds, was unsuccessful. Kersey’s mother opened the door and pulled her son in, at which point Hopper fired his Taser, hitting the 17-year-old in the back. The mother pulled out one of the probes, and Kersey fled through the house to the kitchen.

Hooper attempted to take control of Kersey, but had to fight off his mother and later a family friend. It turned into a donnybrook in the kitchen as Hopper and Officer Howard, who arrived as backup, struggled to subdue Kersey, while keeping the mother and family friend out of the fray. At one point, dispatchers called for all officers in East Dayton to respond to the scene.

Neither Tasing nor pepper spray were effective. Officers used physical strikes and baton strikes to the thigh to take Kersey to the ground and handcuff him. It took several officers to get Kersey to a police cruiser, at one point placing his feet in a hobble so he could no longer kick them.

Kersey was taken to Grandview Hospital for treatment of his injuries. While there he spoke with Sgt. Roger Brown, who was investigating the use of force.

According to Brown’s report, Kersey said “he was not sure why he ran from the officer, but believed he was scared. He stated he wanted to go home, and the officer would not let him.”

Kersey was later released from the hospital and taken to the Montgomery County Juvenile Justice Center.

After speaking with witnesses, reviewing the police reports, photographing the injuries, the report exonerated Hooper and Howard of any allegations of wrong-doing.

The mother, who went by the name of Pamela Thompson at the time, was charged and convicted of resisting arrest and obstructing official business in Dayton Municipal Court. She was sentenced to 90 days in jail, which was suspended, and ordered to participate in an anger management program, according to court records. She was initially fined $100, plus $111 in court costs, which have not been paid.

The family friend was convicted of resisting arrest, given a 90-day sentence with 78 days suspended. He also was fined, which has yet to be paid.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2290 or dpage@DaytonDailyNews.com.

Share this article