Officer suspended in bus incident
The officer had handcuffed and arrested a girl after witnesses reported seeing a student toss things from a bus.
By MATTHEW WAITE AND JACOB H. FRIES
Published February 10, 2006
ST. PETERSBURG - The city police officer who handcuffed a 13 year-old girl aboard a school bus Nov. 16 was suspended for a week without pay after an investigation found he shouldn't have arrested her, his bosses said Friday.
Police Chief Chuck Harmon said the officer, Roberto Rolon, did not violate any policies when he handcuffed the girl after witnesses reported seeing a student throwing things out of the bus window. Harmon also said the officer was right to stop the bus.
However, witness interviews and an 18-minute videotape of the incident showed there wasn't enough evidence for Rolon to arrest Ashley Marie Mitchell, let alone support the disorderly conduct charge that prosecutors later dropped, Harmon said.
"He made some judgment errors, in my opinion," Harmon said of Rolon.
Rolon learned of his suspension Thursday evening, when it began. He was also referred to police counseling. Under police rules, he can appeal the discipline.
The Mitchell family's attorney, John McGuire, applauded Harmon's comments and said he hoped the department might develop new policies to prevent a similar incident. The family has not made a decision whether to file a civil lawsuit.
McGuire said the girl continues to experience pain in her shoulder and has suffered the taunts of classmates since the handcuffing.
"The reality is that sometimes good cops do bad things," McGuire said during a news conference at his Clearwater law firm.
Luis Mitchell, the girl's father, also praised Harmon.
"My daughter has been stressed out over this," he said. "She has been humiliated."
Ashley, who did not take reporters' questions, said only: "I'm just happy that chief of police believed me and that's basically it."
The arrest received increased attention because it came months after another videotaped arrest involving a St. Petersburg police officer handcuffing a 5-year old girl who had thrown a tantrum in her kindergarten classroom.
Harmon, however, said the two incidents were very different. He said Rolon didn't violate policy handcuffing Mitchell, and that policy likely won't change. The handcuffing of the 5-year-old, which received worldwide attention, did result in policy changes that now limit when officers can interact with students.
Apart from policy, Rolon's bosses said he could have handled the situation better.
The video shows Mitchell, sitting among a group of kids Harmon said were misbehaving, stand up and shout that she didn't throw anything. Rolon then walks to the back of the bus, grabs the girl, twists her arm behind her back and marches her to the front of the bus, saying: "I don't play. . . . I don't play."
Rolon is later seen loudly lecturing the busload of middle schoolers about how "law enforcement always wins" when people "play" with the police.
Harmon and Lt. Greg Schwemley, Rolon's supervisor, said the officer should have called the girl to the front of the bus when she began misbehaving and ordered her to sit near him, instead of going to the back of the bus and arresting her.
Harmon and Schwemley also said the lecture was uncalled for, given that most of the students were behaving.
[Last modified February 10, 2006, 18:39:15]
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/02/10/Southpinellas/Officer_suspended_in_.shtml
Must be nice. Assault, unlawful detention, violation of civil rights. Punishment, one week suspension, no pay. Talk about a slap on the wrist.
The officer had handcuffed and arrested a girl after witnesses reported seeing a student toss things from a bus.
By MATTHEW WAITE AND JACOB H. FRIES
Published February 10, 2006
ST. PETERSBURG - The city police officer who handcuffed a 13 year-old girl aboard a school bus Nov. 16 was suspended for a week without pay after an investigation found he shouldn't have arrested her, his bosses said Friday.
Police Chief Chuck Harmon said the officer, Roberto Rolon, did not violate any policies when he handcuffed the girl after witnesses reported seeing a student throwing things out of the bus window. Harmon also said the officer was right to stop the bus.
However, witness interviews and an 18-minute videotape of the incident showed there wasn't enough evidence for Rolon to arrest Ashley Marie Mitchell, let alone support the disorderly conduct charge that prosecutors later dropped, Harmon said.
"He made some judgment errors, in my opinion," Harmon said of Rolon.
Rolon learned of his suspension Thursday evening, when it began. He was also referred to police counseling. Under police rules, he can appeal the discipline.
The Mitchell family's attorney, John McGuire, applauded Harmon's comments and said he hoped the department might develop new policies to prevent a similar incident. The family has not made a decision whether to file a civil lawsuit.
McGuire said the girl continues to experience pain in her shoulder and has suffered the taunts of classmates since the handcuffing.
"The reality is that sometimes good cops do bad things," McGuire said during a news conference at his Clearwater law firm.
Luis Mitchell, the girl's father, also praised Harmon.
"My daughter has been stressed out over this," he said. "She has been humiliated."
Ashley, who did not take reporters' questions, said only: "I'm just happy that chief of police believed me and that's basically it."
The arrest received increased attention because it came months after another videotaped arrest involving a St. Petersburg police officer handcuffing a 5-year old girl who had thrown a tantrum in her kindergarten classroom.
Harmon, however, said the two incidents were very different. He said Rolon didn't violate policy handcuffing Mitchell, and that policy likely won't change. The handcuffing of the 5-year-old, which received worldwide attention, did result in policy changes that now limit when officers can interact with students.
Apart from policy, Rolon's bosses said he could have handled the situation better.
The video shows Mitchell, sitting among a group of kids Harmon said were misbehaving, stand up and shout that she didn't throw anything. Rolon then walks to the back of the bus, grabs the girl, twists her arm behind her back and marches her to the front of the bus, saying: "I don't play. . . . I don't play."
Rolon is later seen loudly lecturing the busload of middle schoolers about how "law enforcement always wins" when people "play" with the police.
Harmon and Lt. Greg Schwemley, Rolon's supervisor, said the officer should have called the girl to the front of the bus when she began misbehaving and ordered her to sit near him, instead of going to the back of the bus and arresting her.
Harmon and Schwemley also said the lecture was uncalled for, given that most of the students were behaving.
[Last modified February 10, 2006, 18:39:15]
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/02/10/Southpinellas/Officer_suspended_in_.shtml
Must be nice. Assault, unlawful detention, violation of civil rights. Punishment, one week suspension, no pay. Talk about a slap on the wrist.
