05/06/2010 // West Palm Beach, FL, USA // Tara Monks // Tara Monks
Baltimore, MD – Three Baltimore City Police officers were indicted Tuesday, May 4, 2010, on charges of kidnapping and assault, among others, as reported by the Baltimore Sun. The officers are accused of abusing their power to kidnap two Baltimore teens and steal their belongings, leaving one in a Howard County state park without his shoes, socks or cell phone. The charges come after a year-long investigation.
The family of the boy left in the park filed a $100 million lawsuit against the officers in March, claiming the teen suffered irreparable damage from the May 2009 incident. An attorney for the family stated, “There are so very few indictments of excessive force and misconduct by police officers, we need more legal enforcement to let police know that there are repercussions for their actions.”
The indictment came exactly a year after the three officers, Tyrone S. Francis, Gregory Hellen and Milton G. Smith, allegedly picked up Michale Brian Johnson, Jr. from the 1600 block of N. Gilmor Street and abandoned him in Patapsco State Park. The allegations of the officers kidnapping a second teen are from a separate incident.
The officers, who were members of the Violent Crimes Impact Section, are charged with kidnapping, false imprisonment, second-degree assault and misconduct in office, among others. They will be suspended without pay, according to a police spokeswoman.
The president of Baltimore’s Fraternal Order of Police chapter, Robert F. Cherry, told reporters the union will shoulder the officers’ criminal defense costs. He also claimed the allegations were “trumped up charges.”
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