Lawsuit alleges Boone County Deputies falsely arrested husband, wife

[Clyde]

Why is immaterial? If he was in his house and the arrests of the son and mother occurred outside of the house how would he be interfering with the arrests?

 

 

My qualifier said "if he deserved to be arrested." You are asking if he deserved to be.

[Habib]

Police Officers can lie to accomplish their jobs, happens all the time.

 

However, and this is very important, never on an official document or in court or anything like that.

 

I would put something between those two points, which I think has been a source of debate here: It's important that the public/community trust their police and if that trust breaks down it creates a lot of problems.

[theguru]

I would put something between those two points, which I think has been a source of debate here: It's important that the public/community trust their police and if that trust breaks down it creates a lot of problems.

 

Goes without saying in my world.

 

I would love to see the body cam video from this interaction.

[Habib]

Goes without saying in my world.

 

I would love to see the body cam video from this interaction.

 

I'm sure it would clear a lot of things up. I have a suspicion that if Brockman weren't a name well known in the county for another incident this wouldn't be a suit or news. Who knows. But I think the only real question here is if the parents should have been arrested. The guy had a valid arrest warrant and was arrested, I'm not sure it makes a difference what it was for or what they said it was for. My comment on community trust was more general.

[theguru]

I'm sure it would clear a lot of things up. I have a suspicion that if Brockman weren't a name well known in the county for another incident this wouldn't be a suit or news. Who knows. But I think the only real question here is if the parents should have been arrested. The guy had a valid arrest warrant and was arrested, I'm not sure it makes a difference what it was for or what they said it was for. My comment on community trust was more general.

 

I understand Habib and I am glad you pointed it out.

 

I have been out (retired) of Law Enforcement for almost 6 years now and frankly I like to distance myself and just be a good citizen and support all of our local law enforcement officers.

 

If I am spitballing here, when the Police say they have official business you have to take them at their word, if they do something wrong the time to deal with it is after the fact. However, don't get in the way of the Police when they are arresting someone, that will always end bad for you. Yes I am taking the Police side of things here but it sounds like mommy and daddy overstepped their bounds and paid the price.

[UKMustangFan]

I understand Habib and I am glad you pointed it out.

 

I have been out (retired) of Law Enforcement for almost 6 years now and frankly I like to distance myself and just be a good citizen and support all of our local law enforcement officers.

 

If I am spitballing here, when the Police say they have official business you have to take them at their word, if they do something wrong the time to deal with it is after the fact. However, don't get in the way of the Police when they are arresting someone, that will always end bad for you. Yes I am taking the Police side of things here but it sounds like mommy and daddy overstepped their bounds and paid the price.

 

So you would've arrested the dad had it occurred exactly as the suit states?

[theguru]

So you would've arrested the dad had it occurred exactly as the suit states?

 

I don't think there is enough info for me to make any definitive statements.

 

I will say the brain is the Police Officer's greatest asset and in situations like that I believe I tolerated more than most Officers and I worked hard to diffuse similar situations.

 

Or put another way UK, only as a last resort.

[sportsfan41]

A husband and wife have filed a federal lawsuit against three Boone County sheriff’s deputies, alleging they were falsely arrested after the deputies came to their home to arrest their son for unpaid court fees.

 

The lawsuit was filed Monday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. It centers on a Feb. 26, 2016 incident at Donald and Melissa Covington’s home that began around 11 p.m.

 

Among the allegations is that the deputies told the Covingtons they had a warrant to arrest the Covingtons’ 24-year-old son “for assault and fleeing,” according to the lawsuit. Melissa Covington told the deputies that there must be a misunderstanding because those charges had already been resolved.

 

The deputies, the lawsuit says, hid the fact that the warrant was for not paying court costs.

 

According to the lawsuit, when Melissa Covington asked to see the warrant and then offered to bring her son to court in the morning, Deputy Tyler Brockman said they did not have to show her the warrant.

 

With the door closed and locked, the lawsuit says Brockman began shining his flashlight into the home and banging on a window. Covington woke up her son, and he got dressed, went outside and was arrested.

 

Covington returned to the door, saw her son was handcuffed and “continued questioning the deputies about the arrest warrant for her son,” the lawsuit says.

 

Without warning, the lawsuit says, Deputy Wesley Mackey “grabbed Melissa’s wrist, twisted it behind her back and pushed it upwards.” The lawsuit says that was excessive force.

 

Eventually Donald Covington came to the door, told Mackey to let go of his wife and called for his neighbor across the street to begin video-recording. Mackey then handcuffed Melissa without telling her why she was being arrested.

 

The lawsuit says Brockman “instructed” Mackey to arrest Donald Covington. He was still standing inside his home, the lawsuit says, when Mackey reached through the doorway, grabbed his arm and “yanked him out of his house.”

 

He was taken to the county jail barefoot and wearing only a T-shirt and boxer briefs.

 

Brockman is a defendant in a lawsuit filed by the family of Samantha Ramsey whom Brockman shot and killed in 2014 after he said she struck him with a car and tried to drive off as he was on the hood.

 

The lawsuit says the Covingtons did not resist arrest, engage in violent or threatening behavior, and didn’t make “unreasonable noise.”

 

Officials with the sheriff’s office could not be reached for comment.

 

The couple was jailed until the next day and charged with disorderly conduct. They were offered a deal that if they entered a diversion program, prosecutors would recommend their son not be jailed. They completed the program, which included 20 hours of community service, paid court costs and were not convicted of any crime.

 

"Any time a citizen is accused of disorderly conduct and arrested in their own home where they haven't bothered anybody – that’s a serious allegation," said attorney Al Gerhardstein, who is representing the Covingtons. He added that the incident was "precipitous, unnecessary, and with a little bit of talking could have been totally avoided."

 

The lawsuit also names Deputy Jonathan Ball and Boone County Sheriff Michael Helmig as defendants.

 

Lawsuit: Deputies falsely arrested husband, wife

 

States that the Covington's didn't make unreasonable noise. Yet they're yelling at neighbors across the street to start recording. A) I consider yelling across the street at neighbors that time of night to be unreasonable. B) If theyou weren't being unreasonably loud, the Covingtons neighbors likely wouldn't have been watching the incident.

[sportsfan41]

Wouldn't they have had to show the warrant to the homeowners in order to enter the home and arrest their son?

 

No because the warrant for arrest would not give the Deputies the power to enter the home. With that said, I once saw a statue that was specific to Deputies that didn't include other Police Officers that may give them additional powers to enter a home. However, to my knowledge and the way it worked for our Police Department we would have needed a separate search warrant to enter a residence in addition to the warrant for arrest.

 

But either way it wouldn't matter since the lawsuit isn't about entering the home unlawfully.

[theguru]

But either way it wouldn't matter since the lawsuit isn't about entering the home unlawfully.

 

Come on s41, I just answer the questions my followers want answered... :bunny:

[Hellbird]

My last question was about the Dad getting arrested. Where did they have a warrant for his arrest? In the suit it says the Dad was in the home still when he was physically removed from the house and arrested.

The warrant wasn't for the dad. It sounds like he was arrested for interfering/impeding the arrest of his son.

[Hellbird]

Probably unpaid court costs on the charges of assault and fleeing.

Yep, exactly what I was thinking.

[formerkywrestler]

And that's completely different and understandable.

 

The bolded never even crossed my mind. I just can't imagine being 24 and wanting to still live with my parents.

I lived with my Mom when I was 24. Lease ran out at one place in December and I knew I was moving to Louisville in May/June. Didn't want to find another place for six months, the month-to-month rent was higher, and Mom offered me the opportunity to save some money before I moved to Louisville.

 

Then, four years ago at 29 I did it again. Job wanted me down in Etown and my lease ran out in Louisville. I bought a place and lived with my Mom 3 or 4 months while I fixed that house up.

 

I was extremely lucky to have Mom there to help out both times. Also, it allowed me to save some money and be in the current spot where I'm 33 with one house completely paid off and working on another.

 

In short, don't be quick to judge.

[oldgrappler]

And UKMustang's questioning brought up something else in my mind. The mother asked to see a warrant and offered to take her son to court the next day. Her request was refused or denied. The officers began shining a flashlight in the windows at which point the mother woke up her son and he went outside, leading to his arrest.

 

Had the mother not indicated whether the son was in her house or not and just said, "I am sorry but we cannot help you. Please leave the premises," then closed the door and gone back to bed, would she be in violation of the law? Or is she obligated, by law, to produce her son?

 

(BTW, I already have a good idea of the answer cause I watch a lot of Law enforcement-themed TV shows like Bluebloods, Law and Order, and Criminal Minds, and that's practically as good as a law degree so don't try to pull the wool over my eyes when you answer)

[formerkywrestler]

(BTW, I already have a good idea of the answer cause I watch a lot of Law enforcement-themed TV shows like Bluebloods, Law and Order, and Criminal Minds, and that's practically as good as a law degree so don't try to pull the wool over my eyes when you answer)

:lol2: :lol2: :lol2: