Birmingham Police Defend their Conduct in Vicious Videotaped Beating of Unarmed Black Man
Wednesday, March 30, 2011 at 01:11AM 
On Jan. 23, 2008 38-year-old Anthony Warren was severley beaten by Brmingham Police. He suffered a severe concussion, a skull fracture, internal bleeding and broken bones. The incident was captured on video. According to his pending lawsuit, Birmingham police officers "repeatedly struck [him] about his head and body causing him to be hospitalized for four days and unconscious for the majority of that time' Although numerous Birmingham officers and supervisors had seen the the video- none reported it for nearly a year. [MORE] and [MORE]
From [HERE] A daylong hearing Monday on five former Birmingham officers, fired after the high-profile videotaped beating of a motorist after a chase in 2008, ended without resolution or a recommendation.
Jim Sturdivant, the hearing officer charged with making a recommendation to the three-member Jefferson County Personnel Board, was by the day's end clearly frustrated with the city of Birmingham, which he said didn't provide sufficient testimony supporting the firing of the officers in 2009.
Sturdivant also said he was dismayed that they didn't show the highly publicized videotape itself [see HERE], that Police Chief A.C. Roper appeared at the hearing only after he questioned his absence and that no one with the authority to hire or fire officers took the stand.
He asked attorney Michael Choy, who is representing the city of Birmingham, to explain the city's position in the case.
"The officers used excessive force over and above the level they were trained to use in a situation such as this," Choy told him.
The answer didn't satisfy the hearing officer. "I am not comfortable in the manner in which this hearing has been conducted," Sturdivant said sternly. "The city is, in effect, trying to tie my hands, and the board's hands.
"I am not comfortable making a recommendation on what I have heard today," Sturdivant said. "I am going to simply state that the hearing is recessed. I don't know where we'll go from here."
Choy declined to comment following the hearing. During the hearing, however, he told Sturdivant he advised the chief initially not to attend the hearing or to take the stand.
The city is facing a civil suit in the matter, which is set to begin in September.
The five officers -- David Doran, Barrett G. Dewitt, Heath Boackle, Thomas Cleveland and Kenneth Prevo -- were fired in 2009 after the incident came to light.
At the time they were fired, Roper held a press conference at which he said there was failure of policy, personnel, training, procedures and supervision.
A federal grand jury indicted Doran and Dewitt, who in January 2011 were found not guilty of using unreasonable force and violating the civil rights of Anthony Warren. Warren is serving 20 years for the attempted murder of a Hoover police officer whom Warren struck during the 2008 chase.
The other three officers were never criminally charged or indicted.
A stay on the termination appeals process was lifted in January by the board, which also consolidated the cases.
At Monday's hearing, Choy called as witnesses the five officers and the commander of the Internal Affairs Division.
All of the officers testified that they responded to the situation with the appropriate amount of force, and testified that they wanted their jobs back.
"It appeared to me he (Warren) was struggling with the officers," said Cleveland, the last of the five officers to arrive on the scene. He said he struck Warren once, and pulled back his second strike. "I was perfectly in accordance with the rules and regulations," he said.
Internal Affairs Lt. Dennis Shepard testified for the city that, based on the video he viewed during the investigation, the officers didn't follow departmental policy in their response to the situation with Warren. He agreed the threat was high, but said they should have taken cover and assessed the situation. Instead, he said, "they rushed forward and used force," Shepard said.
Shepard said the amount of force used was more than the situation called for because "the suspect at that time was not offering any resistance."
The officers' lawyers didn't call any witnesses but did enter into evidence expert testimony from an accident reconstructionist that found the officers couldn't have seen Warren being thrown from the vehicle. They also entered an analysis from a lethal force expert that found the officers had an "immediate and urgent" need to control the hands and body of Warren.
Both sides agreed to a joint stipulation of facts in the case, which included the following: Dewitt struck Warren with his retractable regulation baton, striking in a manner consistent with department regulations; Doran struck Warren with closed fists in an effort to get him to comply and show his hands; Boackle, Cleveland, and Prevo only executed strikes consistent with their training in the use of pressure point control tactics.
"It's a fairly overwhelming case in support of the officers," said attorney Gayle Gear, who represents Prevo, Dewitt and Doran. "We're grateful to have the opportunity to go before the Personnel Board."
It's unclear when the appeal may be resolved.
About two dozen supporters -- officers and families -- attended the hearing along with the leadership of the local Fraternal Order of Police.
"It's my hope they are reinstated with full payment and made whole," said Lt. Allen Treadaway, former FOP president. "You've got five officers with a combined 75 years experience that has been nothing but exemplary. These officers have suffered enough."
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