Federal Jury finds in favor of city, officers

[tcrashfx]

Jury finds in favor of city, officers
Tuesday, March 20, 2007, at 3:09 p.m.

By Brian Lazenby
Staff Writer

A jury in U.S. District Court today found two Chattanooga police officers and the city were not at fault during a March 16, 2002, incident in which a North Chattanooga man claims he was beaten while in handcuffs.

The panel of five men and three women deliberated about an hour and a half before finding in favor of the defendants.

Jeffrey Steven Myres filed the lawsuit against the city and officers Daniel Hooten and Thomas Buttry claiming that Mr. Hooten, who no longer is with the department, began harassing him after he filed a complaint with the Better Housing Commission.

Chattanooga attorney Jerry Tidwell, who represents Mr. Hooten, said he believes the evidence was clear in the defendants’ favor.

www.timesfreepress.com/absolutenm/templates/?a=12526&z=41

[Gary]

Interesting that the city did not knuckle under and settle on this one.

[tcrashfx]

If they would grow some balls, this type of costly (To the taxpayers) frivilous lawsuits would virtually cease to exist.

Fight one or two more of these, with the costs adjudicated to the plaintiff, and we would put at least one local attorney out of business and send him back to the South Carolina Highway Patrol.

[el Gusano]

I was going to make a tongue-in-cheek comment about it obviously being rigged; otherwise, the honest, and obviously innocent citizen would have won the case.

But, I didn't feel like making the comment.

[Longshot! [ Saint ]]

Why, Gusano--you are an absolute Oak tree of self control.