A police brutality case, first reported by the Mercury in 2008, has finally come to a close.
A federal jury yesterday ruled unanimously that Portland Police Officer Benjamin Davidson used excessive force when he Tasered Dan Halsted after suspecting that he’d tagged a nearby commercial building. The 2008 incident left Halsted—who was innocently walking home from a bar—seriously cut up and traumatized from Davidson’s attack. However, Halsted waited until 2010 to file suit against the city and the officers at the scene.
Halsted, the man behind Hollywood Theater’s Grindhouse Film Festival, was ultimately awarded a grand total of $206,372.70 for his cumulative damages. But it wasn’t easy. The Oregonian reports that the trial sparked heated debate between Halsted’s attorney, Joseph Grube, and Deputy City Attorney James Rice, followed by a three-hour-long deliberation by the jury.
The gem of the trial?
“Rice tried to discredit Halsted, asking him about his collection of Kung Fu movies, and suggested during his closing argument that Halsted kept resisting because he was likely intoxicated. Halsted’s attorney countered that there was no evidence of Halsted’s intoxication, and asked Halsted if he’d ever been trained in martial arts, to which the answer was no.”
All in all, the long-winded case left Halsted satisfied (his Facebook status update today? “Dan Halsted:1 Portland Police: 0”), but with lingering (and understandable) police animosity.
“It’s scary because it wasn’t just the incident but their report of what happened, which didn’t align with the facts,” Halsted said after the verdict, according to the O. “I was just a guy walking home. It could’ve been anybody.”
IF DAN HALSEAD DIDN’T WANT EXTRA-JUDICIAL PUNISHMENT FROM THE LOCAL CONSTABULATORY SERVICES, HE SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN PROVIDING UNREQUESTED PRO-BONO MURAL WORK FOR THE LOCAL PROPERTY-OWNERS.
$200k, that’s about what Last Thursday costs the city per year. People sure make a fucking stink about that. Meanwhile, the PPB is shooting first and paying out later. Great job, guys.
Ah, Graham, shut the fuck up.
In reading the O story it sounds like the city’s defense attorney was susceptible to making ye olde “terrible argument.” It’s easy when you are talking to your brothers in arms at the insurance company, but when one attempts to make yon terrible argument to a common-sense inclined jury, whoopsy. “He must have been physically aggressive because he owned a collection of kung fu movies.” Great argument, buddy.
Great news. And I hope he uses some of that money to cultivate further his collection of film prints.
“However, Halsted waited until 2010 to file suit against the city and the officers at the scene.”
Everyone always wonders why it took 2 years to sue someone: the answer is because you generally have 2 years to file an injury-based lawsuit. Usually the parties negotiate before they file the lawsuit, because litigation is an expensive and risky pain in the ass. If they can’t resolve the case within 2 years, lawsuit is filed and away you go toward trial.
No word on whether or not the cops are still on the force. My assumption is that they are. Officer Benjamin J. Davidson should be in prison.
Deputy City Attorney James Rice presented the most asinine argument possible too. Fuck him.