Family of teen slain by police awarded $8.5M

A jury awarded Annie Johnson $8.5 million for the wrongful death of her son, Aaron Harrison, who was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer in 2007/

Police said Harrison was shot after raising a gun at an officer during the chase in the 1300 block of South Mozart Street. But five eyewitnesses testified that Harrison wasn't carrying a gun and didn't point one at an officer, and that they saw no gun near his body immediately after the shooting, said the family's attorney, James Montgomery, at a news conference Friday in his office.

"Then after the handcuffing — magically the gun appears," Montgomery said of the 9 mm weapon police said they recovered. "Evidence pointed to a planted weapon on the ground."

The wrongful death lawsuit took six years to play out in Cook County Circuit Court. Jurors, who were encouraged by the family's attorneys to re-enact the shooting, took less than three hours to reach a verdict, Montgomery said. An earlier trial in May ended with a mistrial after that jury deadlocked.

The city already has spent more than $54 million this year — twice what was budgeted — to settle police misconduct lawsuits.

Teen, 16, alleges excessive force, false arrest in lawsuit against Hanceville cop

A lawsuit filed against a former Hanceville police officer alleging he used excessive force against a 15-year-old girl and caused her to be bitten by the department’s K-9 police dog will be heard in Cullman County Circuit Court Tuesday.

Harold Cox, who now works for the Sumiton Police Department, is accused of pulling the sleeping girl out of bed, dragging her outside the home on Williams Avenue Northeast in only a T-shirt and panties, slamming her on the hood of a police car and then putting her in a police vehicle with the K-9 dog that bit her twice on her arm.

The lawsuit filed in March by the girl’s mother, Aimme Davis Cooper, on behalf of her daughter accuses Cox of assault and battery, false imprisonment, excessive use of force and false arrest stemming from the alleged incident on Sept. 29, 2012.

According to the complaint, Cox went to the home of Johnnie and Jamie Davis to investigate a reported noise complaint. Attorneys for Cox and Hanceville allege in court documents that a house party was going on at the residence, and police arrested several individuals, including minors, that night. However, Porter said his client, although she was arrested, was never charged with any crime. Juvenile criminal records are not public.

Cox found Johnnie Davis in the front yard and informed him of the noise complaint. Davis went inside, closing the door behind him, turned down music and came back outside to talk with Cox, according to the complaint.

“Officer Harold Cox, then without consent of Mr. or Mrs. Davis or anyone else at the residence entered through the front door while Mr. Davis was still in his living room,” the complaint stated. “Officer Harold Cox was immediately put on notice that his entry was without consent, as Mr. Davis asked Harold Cox  if he had a warrant. Officer Cox had no warrant. Officer Cox stated he did not need one and still without consent entered the living room of the home.”

Cox walked to a back bedroom where he found the teen girl, now 16, another minor and Jamie Davis. According to the complaint, Cox told the sleeping girl to get out of bed, and when she did not respond, he allegedly forcibly picked her up, threw her in floor and then on the bed, stuck his knee in her back while he handcuffed her and took her outside. The complaint states the girl suffered a head injury in the bedroom and two dog bites on her arm when she was placed inside a police vehicle with the K-9, rather than the back of other available patrol vehicles that had arrived on the scene.

Cop taunts a child....do you believe this lunatic?

Officer Paul Bradley Rogers’ Record Cleared Six Years After Accidentally Killing 5-Year-Old Austin Haley

A Noble, Okla., police officer, who  shot and killed a child while trying to shoot a snake, has had his record cleared.

Six years ago, Jack Tracy was fishing with his 5-year-old grandson Austin Haley when two police were called to home on a report of a large snake dangling from a birdhouse. One of the officers, Paul Bradley Rogers, fired two shots from his gun. The bullets missed the snake, but one struck Haley, who was in the woods directly behind the home.

“The second bullet hit him in the back of the head and came out here in his forehead,” Tracy said, according to KFOR-TV. “It was horrible. Blood and brains everywhere.”

 Robert Shawn Richardson and Rogers pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter for the accidental shooting death. Richardson received a five-year deferred sentence, and Rogers received two and a half.

Rogers’ record has now reportedly been cleared.

Haley’s father, Jack said, “I hate to dredge this up again. But here we are six years later, and we’re finding out the shooter, Brad Rogers, his records have been expunged.”

The family believes the law is outrageous according to Jack Tracy.

“He was shot and killed by the reckless act of another person and they want to sweep the whole thing under the carpet and forget it?” Tracy said.

Paul Bradley Rogers fired two shots from his 357 at the snake which was dangling from a wooden birdhouse.

Both bullets missed the snake and one struck the child who was in the woods. 

State pays after child shot with Taser

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The state is shelling out in excess of $500,000 to settle a lawsuit filed on behalf of a 10-year-old boy accidentally shot with an electric stun gun by a police officer at a career fair.

Officer Chris Webb, during a career day in May 2012 at Tularosa Intermediate School in Tularosa  pointed his Taser at the boy and said, "Let me show you what happens to people who do not listen to police."

The young victim's attorneys say 50,000 volts of electricity traveled through the boy.

Ardmore school resource officer issued warrant for rape- molestation in 1997

ARDMORE, OK - Court documents show that an Ardmore police officer who serves as the resource officer for Ardmore schools had an arrest warrant issued for him 16 years ago for lewd molestation and second degree rape.

An arrest affidavit from Wagoner County, Oklahoma states that a 14-year-old girl accused Corporal Barry Antwine of touching her inappropriately while they were in class at Wagoner High School, to which Antwine admitted doing so.

Antwine then entered into an agreement of deferred prosecution with the State of Oklahoma that stated charges would not be filed if he met the conditions of the agreement for four years, including restitution, probation fees, community service and a victim's compensation assessment.

We spoke to Ardmore police Sergeant Ryan Hunnicutt about this information. He said in a statement,

"Having just been made aware of these documents and the accusations they contain we are certainly going to look into them. Potentially this is a very serious matter and we are looking into it but do not know enough of the situation to make a statement at this time."

We also spoke with city manager J.D. Spohn today who said that interim police Chief Kevin Norris recommended that Antwine be reassigned pending an investigation.

Antwine has recently filed an EEOC complaint against the city of Ardmore alleging discrimination for an unrelated matter.

We'll continue to follow this story.