HOUSTON — A former
Houston police officer accused of taking part in a videotaped beating of a
15-year-old burglary suspect told jurors Friday that he didn’t mistreat the
teen, insisting he never kicked or stomped on his head or neck as prosecutors
have alleged.
Andrew Blomberg
testified he only used his foot to move and secure Chad Holley’s arm during the
March 2010 arrest after the suspect tried to run away from police who were
investigating a break-in.
“Did you intend to
mistreat?” asked Blomberg’s defense attorney, Dick DeGuerin.
“No sir, I did
not,” replied Blomberg, 29, who was fired after being accused in the alleged
violence.
But prosecutors
asserted that the video showed the teen wasn’t resisting arrest and that
Blomberg unnecessarily kicked the boy, causing his body to involuntarily spasm.
Prosecutors played the video as they questioned Blomberg, often advancing it
frame by frame to illustrate their points.
Blomberg is
charged with official oppression, a misdemeanor, and faces up to a year in jail
if convicted. He is the first of four fired police officers to stand trial in
the case.
A security camera
recorded footage of Holley’s daylight arrest. The boy, who is black, is seen
falling to the ground after trying to hurdle a police squad car and then
surrounded by at least five officers, some of whom appear to kick and hit his
head, abdomen and legs.
A community
activist released the video to the media, prompting fierce public criticism of
the police department. Black community leaders said they believed Holley’s
treatment was another example of police brutality against minorities and that
the misdemeanor charges were not serious enough.
The ex-officer
told jurors that when Holley fell to the ground, he only used his right heel to
yank the teenager’s left arm back, never stepping on his hand or arm.
“I run right up to
him. I yell at him, ‘Get your hands behind your back.’ I don’t see him
complying. I use my foot, to try to move his hand back,” Blomberg said, adding
he was one of several officers trying to arrest Holley.
The fired officer
said he tried again to secure Holley’s arm with his foot before running off to
help another officer arrest another suspect.
While questioned
by prosecutor Clint Greenwood, Blomberg stepped down from the witness stand and
demonstrated for jurors how he tried to put his right foot into the crook of
Holley’s left arm to secure it.
Greenwood
suggested the videotape showed Holley had his hands on the back of his head as
a sign of surrender to police, but Blomberg said he couldn’t tell that from the
video. His response elicited groans from some people in the courtroom, who
included community activists who have spoken out against the alleged beating.
Greenwood asked
Blomberg whether Holley, when he was on the ground and surrounded by officers,
was “resisting or threatening you or any other officers in any manner?”
“Other than not
putting his hands behind his back, no,” Blomberg responded.
Following
Blomberg’s testimony, which lasted several hours, retired Texas Ranger Maurice
Cook told jurors that he believes Blomberg “acted as a reasonable officer” when
he tried to arrest Holley. Cook now teaches classes on the use of force at a
local community college.
Several officers
who testified for Blomberg also said Holley was resisting arrest. Blomberg and
the officers testified that before arresting Holley, they had been told the
teen and several other suspects could be armed and dangerous participants in a
series of bold daytime burglaries.
Holley, now 18,
has testified that he didn’t resist arrest as he lay on the ground and that
officers hit him so much that he briefly lost consciousness. Holley was
convicted of burglary in juvenile court in October 2010 and placed on
probation.
Blomberg, whose
family was in the courtroom, told jurors that he thought Holley might be in the
Bloods gang because he was wearing a red shirt. The teenager has denied being
in a gang.
Before testimony
began Friday, state District Judge Ruben Guerrero denied a defense motion to
find Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland Jr. in contempt for discussing the
case with the media after he testified earlier this week.
McClelland had
told reporters that Blomberg and the other indicted officers should have been
charged with felonies instead of misdemeanors.
Guerrero told
attorneys in the case to remind witnesses that they can’t discuss their
testimony.
A federal lawsuit
that Holley filed against Blomberg, the other fired officers and the city of
Houston is pending.
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Follow Juan A.
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