I'm trying really hard to come up with a snarky comment to headline this news story, but really, it speaks for itself
Posted by
zeitgeist
Dec 16 '08, 21:03
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S.F. police accused of breaking elderly porn fan's arm
A jury heard opening statements today in a lawsuit filed by a 76-year-old man who says San Francisco police broke his arm after his wife called 911 from their Potrero Hill home, where he was watching a pornographic movie with the volume turned up high.
The unusual case began when Raymond J. Miller was sitting in an easy chair in the living room of his home on Texas Street, drinking and watching the movie the night Jan. 7, 2006, according to witness testimony.
His wife of 32 years, Jean Miller, called police but the line soon went dead. It's unclear whether she hung up on her own or her husband forced her to get off the phone, but in any case, the cutoff automatically prompted a police response.
Four officers soon arrived at the Millers' home. Raymond Miller, wearing only shorts, continued to watch the movie with the volume up and ignored the officers as they walked past him and spoke to his wife, who said she feared he would kill her at any time, authorities said.
When police tried to arrest Raymond Miller for allegedly threatening his wife, he responded, "Get out of my house, get out of my f- house!" Deputy City Attorney Daniel Zaheer said in his opening statement in San Francisco Superior Court.
The 270-pound Miller claims the officers pushed him to the ground to handcuff him, then lifted him up by the cuffs, breaking his left arm and cutting his wrists.
"He was upset - he was pissed off," his attorney, Norman Newhouse, said outside court. "But however he acted, that doesn't give them the right to pull him up by the handcuffs."
Zaheer, however, told the jury that any injuries Miller suffered were his own fault, because he had resisted a lawful arrest. Zaheer said the officers had tried to "subtly glide" Miller's hands back to be handcuffed, but that Miller had pushed them away.
Two of the officers, Kevin Rightmire and Stephen Coleman, then "did what they were trained to do," Zaheer said. "They grabbed him by the wrist and applied pressure," in an officially sanctioned method, to bring a resisting suspect to the ground.
Zaheer downplayed the injuries, saying Miller had suffered only "a minor chip fracture" on the elbow and "a little cut on his wrist and a tiny cut on the side of his lip."
Another officer on the scene, Samuel Fung, testified today that any cuts had been caused by handcuffs that were too small for Miller's wrists.
Doctors concluded the injuries were treatable with painkillers and ice, Zaheer said, adding that Miller had not bothered to return for a follow-up medical visit.
Miller did not file a complaint with the civilian-run police watchdog agency, the Office of Citizen Complaints, and the matter was never investigated internally. He did file suit, however, claiming the officers had used excessive force and asking a jury to award him $50,000.
The Police Commission has sought assurances from the city attorney's office that any suit in which a plaintiff claims excessive force by police will automatically result in the watchdog agency launching an investigation. City officials could not explain today why that did not happen in this case.
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