Mike Colvin and Detective Devin Barkalow, are now on administrative duty. contact info. The force applied by the officers caused Bottom's "shoulder to 'pop,' tearing her rotator cuff and causing severe injury," according to the lawsuit. We released a statement because theres a lot of concern on how these officers and the Sheriffs department handled the situation, when they couldve handed it much more professionally than that, said Black, who was in Elizabeth City on Saturday taking part in state NAACP activity regarding the police shooting of Andrew Brown Jr. There are no facts likely to emerge that warrant a 68 year old to be manhandled like that, fucking none. And the departments did not seem inclined to take action to hold these officers accountable. They invoke such fear and distrust that we as a council have to think of a way in which we can respond, Heggins said. All rights reserved. But they approached her vehicle with guns drawn and later violated her rights by using excessive force, the lawsuit said. She says she had her music turned up loudly and was listening to tunes as she made the journey. The following alternative links are available: Note: this is a bot providing a directory service. Barkalow bragged about grabbing a handful of dreads, and said at that point she earned it.. Stephanie Bottom was driving on May 30, 2019, along Interstate 85 from Georgia to North Carolina to attend her great aunt's funeral, her attorney Scott Holmes told CNN on Tuesday. Jerry Barkai - Devin Barkalow. "Once it became clear they wanted her to pull over she was afraid and was looking for a safe place to pull over," Holmes told CNN in an email. The lawsuit names Benfield and Barkalow as the two officers who did this. Theres nothing that can justify how she was pulled out of the car, but what led up to that?. 2 State House Station Newcastle, ME 04553 Augusta, ME 04333-0002 Cell: (207) 975-3132 (207) 287-1400 TTY: (207) 287-4469 [email protected] State Representative - CHLOE S. MAxMIN Capitol Address: Home Address: The officers made several attempts to gain the cooperation of Mr. Tori Cuthbertson to turn down his motorcycle radio/music and speak with them about the matter. After the search, officers told Bottom to stand, but she said she couldn't due to the pain in her shoulder, according to the suit. And they did their jobs while bullets were flying around them and a gunman was on the loose. After she cried for police to get her medical attention I am hurting really bad one of the officers on the scene congratulated his law enforcement colleagues on a job well done, according to the lawsuit. She then proceeded to take them on a 10 mile chase. The second cop just comes rushing in and let's adrenaline take over. Barkalow remembers how female cadets were hazed and harassed back then. SALISBURY Following a federal lawsuit filed by a Georgia woman who claims Salisbury and Rowan County officers used excessive force against her in a 2019 traffic stop, the Salisbury-Rowan NAACP is calling for accountability and transparency from local law enforcement agencies. Some of those images can be seen immediately below: The lawsuit comes as questions surrounding excessive and deadly force by police against Black people remain front and center this week after Derek Chauvin was convicted of murdering George Floyd in Minneapolis and 16-year-old MaKhia Bryant was fatally shot during an altercation in Columbus, Ohio. Lawsuit to be filed against police after Calif. man dies while being restrained by police. How many more Black and brown people are going to be hurt and killed by the hands of officers, Miller said. The suit says she was going 10 mph over the speed limit 80 mph in a 70 mph zone. Benfield opened the drivers side door and commanded the driver to exit the vehicle to which she refused to obey commands several times, an incident report states. Bottom is seeking a jury trial, compensatory and punitive damages as well as court costs and attorneys fees. As she was handcuffed on the side of the road, the officers searched her vehicle and purse without her consent, a warrant, or probable cause which violated Bottom's Fourth Amendment rights, the lawsuit says. In addition to calling for the release of video footage, the Salisbury-Rowan NAACP is demanding a transparent investigation into the incident. Bottom claimed she was driving 70 mph or 75 mph with her music turned up so loudly that she couldnt hear the sirens. Didnt want to get thrown out of a car? When Bottom didn't immediately pull over, one of the officers making the traffic stop identified in the lawsuit as Salisbury Police Officer Devin Barkalow made statements recorded by his body. Stop Sticks, a brand name tire deflation device used by law enforcement agencies, were deployed at mile marker 87 about 14 miles away from where the chase started and near the point where I-85 splits into I-85 Business near the Davidson County Airport. Contact reporter Natalie Anderson at 704-797-4246. The information viewed in the video from 2019 released by local media is not what we expect or will accept from our local law enforcement, she said. 'White privilege and entitlement:' NC city official fired after refusing to address woman by doctoral title. She really didnt see three cop cars with lights and sirens? (holmes, curtis) They ignored her cries for medical attention and failed to render immediate treatment for her injuries. It caused her a very significant injury that required surgery, that required her to spend time in the hospital. She also said she was playing loud music in her car and didnt realize police were trying to stop her. Published 12:10 am Wednesday, May 5, 2021, By Natalie Anderson Sifford was recently indicted on murder charges from a 2014death investigation. While state law allows people pictured in body camera videos to receive a copy, Rowan County government is prevented from releasing the video without a court order. As she was handcuffed on the side of the road, the officers searched her vehicle and purse without her consent, a warrant, or probable cause which violated Bottom's Fourth Amendment rights, the lawsuit says. Black said the Salisbury-Rowan NAACPs legal redress committee came together to craft the wording and demands made in the letter after analyzing the available camera footage of the incident. Barkalow and another Salisbury officer, Bottom claims they . Yeah she ran for 10 miles. Gemale Black, president of the Salisbury-Rowan NAACP, said the letter was sent to both law enforcement agencies as well as Salisbury city council members and the Rowan County Board of Commissioners. . View Devin Barkalow's record in Wild Rose, WI including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. Bottom would later be charged with speeding, failure to heed to blue lights and resisting, delaying and obstructing an officer. Barkalow, who was hired by the department in 2015, left the agency to take a position with federal law enforcement in February 2020, according to Linda McElroy, a spokeswoman for the city of. Real social injustice exists and you are prolonging any chance of a solution by floating this crap. After a review of those policies, Black said he would like to see the creation of a new zero-tolerance policy that would establish an approach in penalizing and/or prosecuting police officers who engage in unethical acts when interacting with unarmed, non-violent and non-resisting individuals., The letters last demand is an update to the Rowan County Sheriffs Office mission statement to include inclusive language of professional law enforcement services being provided to visitors., The Sheriff Offices current mission statement reads: To provide professional law enforcement to the citizens of Rowan County, North Carolina through efficient and effective methods. The man was later identified as William Scott Kerr, Jr., 31. Among them was Salisbury police officer Adam Bouk, Rowan County sheriffs deputy Mark Benfield, a Highway Patrol trooper identified in the lawsuit only as Officer Smith and Devin Barkalow, a plainclothes Salisbury cop. When Bottoms didn't immediately pull over, one of the officers making the traffic stop identified in the lawsuit as Salisbury Police Officer Devin Barkalow made statements recorded by his body . She was also charged with speeding and resisting arrest but those were dismissed. Barkalow said he no longer works for the police department but declined to say where he's working now. [email protected]. Relatives & Associates. He is expected to have his first court appearance Monday. Officers Benfield, Barkalow, and Adam Bouk then forced her arms behind her back, tearing her rotator cuff. She said she was driving to Raleigh for a funeral in May 2019 when she was pulled over for speeding and failing to heed to blue lights. Bottom claims the officers refused to get her medical treatment even as she told them she was in pain, according to the lawsuit. Following the public comments, Mayor Pro Tem Al Heggins asked the city council to find a way to address the concerns and deliver transparency. Within seconds of arriving at her driver's side door, officers grabbed the by her arm and hair and pulled her from her vehicle to the ground. Eventually, Bottom received medical attention at the scene and was taken to the hospital, the lawsuit says. Other sheriffs deputies and police officers joined the chase before a tire deflation device was used near Davidson County Airport. Despite that, authorities felt justified in threatening deadly force and physically assaulting the woman because she didnt pull over in a timely manner. This should anger all of us.. Like the officers who leave their home not knowing if they will safely return, many of us feel the exact same way every single day. One of the officers named in the lawsuit, former Salisbury Police Department officer Devin Barkalow, declined to talk about the complaint, referring a reporter to the department. Bailey reminded the public that the Salisbury Police Departments use of force policies are available on the citys website. The federal complaint also names Rowan County Sheriff Kevin Auten as well as the Pennsylvania National Mutual, Casualty Insurance Company, the insurance company with which the Sheriffs Office has a $2 million surety bond. If she was just chilling there being compliant than fuck yeah thats excessive, but they are trained (rightfully) to get a dangerous and non compliant operator of a vehicle out of said vehicle. Contribute to Atlanta Black Star today and help us share our narratives. The 68-year-old Georgia woman, Stephanie Bottom, filed the lawsuit Wednesday in federal court for North Carolinas Middle District about her treatment during the stop involving Salisbury Police and the Rowan County Sheriffs Office. She had to miss a significant amount of work. We as a council have to say more than, be patient. We have to say more than let the process play out. "We were the first two officers there, we found the subject sitting in front of this house,"Wilson said. Texas State Historical Association December 18, 2019. Didnt want to get shot? Barkalow, who was hired by the department in 2015, left the agency to take a position with federal law enforcement in February 2020, according to Linda McElroy, a spokeswoman for the city of. Then Benfield and Salisbury police officer Devin Barkalow have Bottom, then 66, face-down on the road and struggle to handcuff her. Benfield and a second cop, Officer Devin Barkalow, then struggle to put handcuffs on Bottom while she lies face-down on the side of the roadway, according to the footage. The lawsuit seeks monetary damages for the alleged use of excessive force and unlawful search of the plaintiff's purse and vehicle. An internal investigation is pending. Former Salisbury Police officer Devin Barkalow is accused of pulling Bottom out of the vehicle by her hair. Attorneys for Bottom released video to the Charlotte Observer. Lawsuit to be filed against police after Calif. man dies while being restrained by police. So this was very disruptive to her life in many ways.. The Rowan County Sheriffs Office report does not address actions by Salisbury Police officer Barkalow. When Bottom didn't immediately pull over, one of the officers making the traffic stop identified in the lawsuit as Salisbury Police Officer Devin Barkalow made statements recorded by his body. The man facing murder charges, 29-year-old John Calvin Sifford III, crashed his car and ran away in an attempt to flee the officers, according to Salisbury police. Were not asking for much, Black said. Copyright 2017 WBTV. She was accused of refusing to get out of her vehicle and pulling away from the officer. The lawsuit denied those allegations. The lawsuit obtained by The Washington Post, which was filed in the Middle District of North Carolina, accuses Salisbury officers Devin Barkalow and Adam Bouk and Rowan County Sheriff's deputy Mark Benfield of hurting the librarian so badly that she was forced to miss eight months of work. Im totally ok with throwing the book at her for having fled the cops for 10 miles, and Im even ok with having had guns drawn on her cause you never know with this shit, but that really does seem like excessive force to me when they got her out of the car. The allegations were first reported by the Charlotte Observer. She later had surgery for the injury, but it did not fully repair the shoulder, according to the lawsuit, and now there is permanent damage. Sgt. He identified her on the radio as "an older Black female." A frustrated Barkalow called. During this time, Bouk is heard on the body camera footage saying, "That's good police work baby" to other officers, according to the suit. I know she did not apparently have medical issues but they should have checked her over first before slamming her to the ground. We publish narratives intentionally and specifically to enlighten and transform the world. Its not clear in incident reports why deputies otherwise searched her vehicle. But here, that is kind of the main way that people interact with police, Mance added. The company's filing status is listed as Organized and its File Number is B101474. In the footage, Bottom is seen screaming as Benfield, Barkalow, and Salisbury Police Officer Adam Bouk force her to lay face down on the ground, according to the lawsuit. Bottom pleaded guilty to failing to heed blue lights. JAMES R. MORGAN, JR. Womble Bond Dickinson (us) LLP contact info. According to The Associated Press, it was about an hour before EMS arrived. It's unclear how close police were to Bottom's vehicle before she pulled over, as the footage only shows the inside of the police vehicle and the sky. Derek Chauvin trial juror details courtroom experience, deliberations: 'You're watching somebody die on a daily basis'. The company has 1 contact on record. Bottom, who is Black, is suing three officers, the sheriff of Rowan County, N.C., and the city of Salisbury, accusing them of using excessive force and violating her Fourth Amendment rights during a traffic stop that seriously injured her. She later had surgery for the injury, but it did not fully repair the shoulder, according to the lawsuit, and now there is permanent damage. Spiked her car to stop it. Former Salisbury Police Department officer Devin Barkalow, one of the officers identified in the lawsuit, declined to comment on the complaint, directing a reporter to the department. 2/26/2023 3:37:00 AM. I dont understand how they do it in Georgia, but thats not how its done here.. Hospital, the Salisbury-Rowan NAACP is demanding a transparent investigation into the incident a 10 chase! 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