Former Dothan policeman appeals firing

DOTHAN, Ala. - The attorney for a policeman fired from his job for using excessive force said many police officers have shown the same kind of force and were not terminated.

In fact, former Dothan police chief John White said he has in the past used force similar to the kind used by former officer David Darby during two traffic stops over the last year. Darby’s stops were recorded by his in-car camera.

“I don’t like the way it looks, but I’ve done it,” White told Personnel Board members Friday during an employee appeal hearing for Darby, who was terminated March 19.

“Do those two incidents merit termination? No. It is an opportunity to train,” White said, adding that he wouldn’t put much weight on the testimony of another Dothan police officer who testified he had never done it.

White further stated that there was bias against Darby within the department because he is a “Yankee” and speaks abruptly in a loud voice.

City Attorney Len White called John White’s statement shocking and outrageous.
“A former police chief said he would do the same thing!” Len White said. “There’s no conspiracy because he’s a Yankee. When you act like this, that’s the problem. I wanted to show the videos (to show) he (Darby) always thinks the worst. We know every stop is a risk, but when a police officer has no better judgment and no better sense, it’s not acceptable.”

Video from Darby’s police cruiser, which started a few seconds after he turned on his police lights, showed suspects in compliance, officers testified. Both suspects were shown dropped to the ground by Darby.

In the first video, which recorded the date and time as 10:37 p.m. on Feb. 26, 2010, Darby stopped a man who he said was driving speeds in excess of 75 miles per hour on Ross Clark Circle, after having pulled out from Timbers Drive.

The driver, who was a juvenile, got out of the vehicle as instructed, got down on his knees, put his hands on his head and crossed his legs in the back. He is then “tackled,” as Len White called it, handcuffed on the ground and manhandled to his feet. He is taken over to the police car where his face is pushed down on the hood.

Darby testified he did not know the man was a teenager because he was big and for all he knew the young man might have just robbed the convenience store at Timbers and Ross Clark Circle.

“Every traffic stop is different,” Darby said. “You don’t know who’s in a vehicle.”

Darby released the teenager to his parents after charging him with reckless driving. The teen and his mother complained about Darby’s excessive use of force.

The second video was referred to the department by Municipal Court Judge Rose Evans Gordon, who watched the tape as part of a DUI trial. The video showed a DUI suspect being stopped at 3 a.m. on June 11, 2009, on East Main Street. Darby said he was driving 45 in a 30 mile per hour zone and ran a red light.

In the video, Darby and Officer William Phares approach the driver, who went back inside his vehicle after getting out. Darby yelled repeatedly at the driver to show his hands. Darby then pulled out a Taser.

As the suspect complies, Phares is heard saying, “I’ve got this.” As Phares walks the suspect away, the suspect makes a half turn toward him and Darby kicks his feet out from under him because, he said, he didn’t know what the suspect intended to do.

“Stop resisting!” Darby yells, as Phares and the suspect fall to the ground.

“I’m not resisting,” the suspect yells back. “I was getting my wallet out of the truck. Man, what in the world is going on?”

Later in the video as Darby is administering a field sobriety test, the suspect repeatedly rubs his cheek and complains of pain. The suspect is arrested for DUI.
During the hearing, two sergeants and one captain testified the force they saw Darby use is excessive.

Capt. Larry Draughon said Darby was the only person “ranting and raving” on a video he saw. Referring to the DUI tape, Draughon said, “The guy was cooperating. He took two steps. I didn’t see any reason to kick his feet out from under him.”

Darby insists he did not use excessive force and that in both stops, suspects tensed their arms as if they were about to act.

Darby was hired by former chief John Powell and told by former captain, now chief, Greg Benton that there were some officers opposed to Darby joining the department in September 2008.

He said Benton told him that he (Darby) was being watched because of his release from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department following a shooting incident. Darby said that shooting was justified.

Darby is a former firefighter who has served as a law enforcement officer for nearly eight years. He has worked for the Escambia County, Fla. Sheriff’s department; the Department of Homeland Security; Bay County Sheriff’s Department; and the Cedar Grove Police Department.

The Personnel Board could rule in the next two weeks.