Policeman took the stand to explain their use of force against suspect Jeremy Naidoo, whose beating was videotaped
DOWNTOWN LA — Three officers accused of using excessive force in a videotaped 2002 Santa Monica police beating took the stand Wednesday to defend their actions.
Santa Monica Police Department Officer Salvador Lucio, a backup officer who repeatedly struck an admittedly drugged-up suspect in Ocean Park using police-issued nunchakus, said he did so because the man refused to cooperate with officers.
“He was not under control,” Lucio told a jury at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. “He was not cooperating with the officer’s request. He was resisting... It was a very violent, volatile situation.”
Amateur videotape footage of the beating apparently shows Lucio hit suspect Jeremy Naidoo, then 28, five times over the head and shoulders, as Naidoo lies face down on the pavement. Naidoo had been stopped for running a stop sign. He admitted to bolting from his car and throwing away a bag of drugs before being tackled by officers.
Lawyers for Naidoo maintain Lucio used excessive force, continuing to strike Naidoo after he was restrained. In the video, Lucio apparently strikes Naidoo four times rapidly, as former SMPD officer Robert Lanam pins back Naidoo’s right arm and SMPD Officer Michael Bambrick stands behind Naidoo. Lanam and Bambrick also were named as defendants in the civil case.
Naidoo can be heard screaming “Don’t hit me! Please don’t hit me!” and Lucio can be heard yelling “Get your arm back! Get your arm back!” Seven to eight seconds after it appears as though Naidoo is restrained, Lucio delivers a fifth blow.
Asked by Naidoo’s attorney, Steve Hauser, to explain the last hit, Lucio on Wednesday responded, “The reason for that last strike is Mr. Naidoo still has his left hand underneath him. At one point, you can see it shoot forward like the tongue of a snake.
“It was a traffic stop gone bad,” he added. “I had no idea what was going on.”
“It was a traffic stop gone bad. I had no idea what was going on.” — SALVADOR LUCIO SMPD Officer
Bambrick and Lanam told similar stories, describing the taped portion of their encounter with Naidoo as misleading because it followed a violent struggle that began when Naidoo, after being pulled over for running a stop sign, refused to show his hands.
Though Naidoo admitted to running from his car, he denied ever striking any of the officers.
Two eyewitnesses testified to seeing a different series of events. Evan Brown, who filmed the beating, said he heard one of the officers say “Yeah, f*ck him up” before he started recording.
Daniel Weitzel, who said he was sitting in his car smoking a cigarette when Naidoo was pulled over, testified he saw an apparently cooperative Naidoo tackled and beaten by the officers. Weitzel was so disturbed by the incident that he called 911 and demanded an officer be sent out to record his statement against the officers.
“The man (Bambrick) standing above him (Naidoo) kept yelling, ‘Shut the f*ck up! Be quiet! Shut up!’” Weitzel told the jury of five women and three men. Juries in federal civil lawsuits consist of only six people. The two others were alternates who also may deliberate.
Naidoo, who took the stand in his own defense Tuesday, sat quietly next to his attorneys through Wednesday’s proceedings. He wore a dark blue suit and tie.
The excessive force trial began Tuesday and is expected to be completed before the end of this week. It is being heard by United States District Judge Audrey B. Collins. Several pieces of evidence have been kept out of the trial by Judge Collins, including a list of previous crimes Naidoo was convicted of as a youth and a prior excessive force lawsuit levied against Bambrick. Judge Collins deemed none of the barred evidence would be pertinent to the current suit.
What’s at issue in an excessive force case is whether an officer was reasonable in his use of force, when considering the totality of the circumstances. Deputy City Attorney Carol Rohr fought unsuccessfully to keep the video out of trial on the grounds that it didn’t depict the events that preceded the beating. Rohr also lost an earlier court motion to keep the actual nunchakus out of trial and instead show jurors photographs. Rohr declined to comment on the case Wednesday.
The police-issued nunchakus used to hit Naidoo were made from two pieces of heavy, polyurethane plastic, connected by a short string of braided nylon, according to Police Chief James T. Butts, Jr., who has declined to discuss the case at the advice of City Attorney Marsha Moutrie.
Moutrie has commented on the case only to say excessive force suits are rare in Santa Monica.
Hauser, who is representing Naidoo with attorney Fran Campbell, rested his case Wednesday. He said afterward he was confident Naidoo would prevail.
“We’re ahead. We’re winning. We just proved our case. All you have to do is show the tape,” he said. “This is a case of police brutality. My client admittedly made a traffic violation, had drugs on him and was under the influence — and he ran 10 feet. “Then he got beat up,” Hauser added. “No resistance whatsoever.”
Several friends and family members were present for the trial. Among them were Naidoo’s sister and her boyfriend, and Naidoo’s father Vassie, a martial arts teacher and former owner of Palisades Bakery in the Pacific Palisades. Also at trial Wednesday were family members of Lucio and several courtroom spectators.
The video footage of the beating was kept secret by Naidoo’s attorneys until last year, when City Hall asked the case be moved from county to federal court, where the rules governing how evidence is shared are stricter. A short time later, the seven felony charges Naidoo faced in connection with the May 2002 incident were dropped. Naidoo instead pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor charge and was ordered to complete a drug diversion course, according to his lawyers.
It was unknown Wednesday how much money Naidoo hopes to obtain in the civil lawsuit, though the complaint seeks reimbursement for pain and suffering, and emotional distress. Hauser and Campbell declined to say how much money they would ask the jury to award Naidoo, but added that, so far, attorneys for City Hall have not made any offer to settle the case.
“Their offer is bend over,” Campbell said, “and let me kick you in the butt.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 10, 2005. Read the original PDF.