Attorney Clyde Bennett, who represented both women at their arraignment Wednesday, said his clients did nothing wrong and that charges against them should be dismissed.
Both women have faced charges of disorderly conduct and/or resisting arrest in other courts, according to records obtained by the Journal-News.
Maya Dixon, 34, of Columbus, pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct charges in 1999 and 2000 in Hamilton Municipal Court. She has also been charged twice previously with resisting arrest. A 2005 charge in Hamilton County was dismissed, and she was found guilty of resisting arrest in 2000 in Hamilton Municipal Court.
During arraignment Wednesday, Judge Joyce Campbell noted that Maya Dixon had prior traffic charges of a seat belt violation and a child restraint violation that date back to 2001. Both are minor misdemeanors, but Campbell said Dixon “avoided showing up” for court on those charges.
Krystal Dixon, 33, of Cincinnati, had a charge of assault reduced to disorderly conduct in a 2002 case in Massillon Municipal Court in Stark County.
In the Fairfield pool incident, Krystal Dixon was charged with a third-degree misdemeanor of disorderly conduct, with a penalty of 60 days in jail and/or a $500 fine. Maya Dixon’s disorderly conduct charge is a fourth-degree misdemeanor, with 30 days in jail and/or a $250 fine. Resisting arrest is a second-degree misdemeanor, with a maximum 90 days in jail and/or a $750 fine.
The women will return to court for a pretrial hearing on July 8.
Bennett maintains that his clients did nothing wrong and were unlawfully arrested. He said video footage of the incident “speaks for itself.”
“The police have to be attempting to effectuate a lawful arrest. If you’re not committing a crime and not engaging in anything illegal, the police don’t have a right to arrest you,” he said after the hearing. “This is not a police state; this is the United States.”
He asked that the charges be dropped “so the community can move on,” he said.
Fairfield Police Chief Mike Dickey could not be reached for comment Thursday, but he contends the video depicts his officers showing restraint.
The Fairfield police report on the incident states that Krystal Dixon “aggressively confronted pool staff” and was asked to leave. She had returned to the pool after dropping off about eight children there, bringing swim trunks for one of the children who did not have the proper swim attire. A city park ranger tried to intervene, then called the police when the situation escalated.
“During this encounter, Dixon pushed the officer, was warned again and would not leave. She was placed under arrest and aggressively resisted,” the police report states. It was at this point that Maya Dixon “began striking the officer,” according to the report.
Also arrested were a 15-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl. Video footage shows a male officer pulling a young girl away from the crowd with his arm around her neck and arm as he puts her against a vehicle and pulls her arms around her back to handcuff her. The girl screams throughout before finally saying, “OK, OK!”
The male teen was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, while the female was charged with assault and resisting arrest, all misdemeanor charges. They are expected to appear in Butler County Juvenile Court June 29, court officials said.
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