Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/641091
FEBRUARY 17-23, 2016 UCW 9 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Fayetteville Police say a recent court decision restricting the use of Tasers has not affected policy governing their use. "The ruling didn't cause a significant change in our policy. We were mostly in line with the ruling already. We only had to make a minor tweak," said Lt. David McLaurin. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Taser use may be unconstitutionally excessive force in some circumstances. The decision immediately affects five southern states including North Carolina. Fayetteville Police policy says the weapon, which is considered non- lethal, may be used "when attempts to subdue a subject by conventional tactics have been or are likely to be ineffective." The appellate court said police officers in Pinehurst were entitled to qualified immunity from a lawsuit by the family of Ronald H. Armstrong, but that they nonetheless used unconstitutionally excessive force in an incident that killed him. Armstrong was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and paranoid schizophrenia and went off his medication shortly before the 2011 incident. When he learned that commitment papers were taken out by his family, Armstrong wrapped himself around a signpost and refused to leave. Instead of trying to talk him into leaving, the 4th Circuit said, three police officers stunned him five times over about two minutes. The Taser was in "drive stun mode," a setting designed to cause pain and, therefore, create compliance with police orders. That's a method prohibited by Fayetteville police in similar circumstances. Officers and hospital security guards physically removed Armstrong from the signpost, laid him face down on the ground and handcuffed both his arms and his legs. During the struggle, Armstrong complained that he was being choked; he became unresponsive and was pronounced dead on arrival at a nearby hospital. The 4th Circuit Court held that Taser use can — and, in this case, did — violate the subject's Fourth Amendment right that protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures. Armstrong had not committed a crime, the court said and was declared a danger only to himself. Though Armstrong was resisting police, the court said the force used was greater than required. It noted that other circuits have held that Tasers can be a disproportionate force when used against nonviolent resistance and that its own precedent on other police weapons supports the same conclusion about Tasers. "Law enforcement officers should now be on notice that using a Taser against someone like Armstrong violates the Fourth Amendment," the court concluded. Fayetteville police policy prescribes that "Officers should always attempt de-escalation techniques and other options prior to deploying" a Taser, according to McLaurin. It goes on to say "abuse or misuse of the weapon can be a violation of state and federal law." Observers say a plan to turn a Fayetteville antebellum mansion into a school was an exercise in futility. The operator of a private academy wants to convert a Morganton Road home known as Fair Oaks into a small, private middle school. Christy Pettit took on dozens of Haymount's wealthy residents at a public hearing last week and lost. Her request for a special use permit was turned down by the Fayetteville Zoning Commission in a unanimous vote. Pettit will take her case before Fayetteville City Council on March 29. According to the Fayetteville Convention and Visitors Bureau, E.J. Lilly began construction of Fair Oaks in 1858. It stayed in the family for 100 years and was most recently owned by Dr. and Mrs. Albert Stewart Jr. The five-bedroom, four-bath, 4,700 sq. ft. mansion is located on a one- and-a-half-acre lot with several out buildings at the fork of the Fort Bragg Road crossover, which is in the heart of one of Fayetteville's oldest neighborhoods. The house incorporates a Georgian plan with Greek Revival and Italianate elements. During General Sherman's occupation of Fayetteville in 1865, some of the Union troops camped on the grounds. It's said that Sherman and his officers occupied the house itself. A silver tray bearing bullet holes of Sherman's soldiers, who used the tray for target practice, still remains in the Lilly family. Pettit has an option to buy the house for $599,000. The two-story white house has been on the market for three years. Pettit said she would preserve the structure and renovate the bathrooms and kitchen. "This house is slowly deteriorating," Pettit testified at the Zoning Commission meeting. Her interest in the house is two-fold: Pettit told the Zoning Commission she has an interest in preserving history while providing quality education. She would like to add to her private school known as First Impressions Academy across town with a second campus. The Zoning Commission agreed with city staff that Dobbin Avenue, which provides access to the property, is too narrow to accommodate the traffic that would be generated by a school. Staff recommended denial of the special use permit because of what planner Greg Harmon said would be traffic issues. Dobbin Avenue is off Morganton Road. It leads to Lilly Avenue, a short lane at the rear of the property. Dobbin Avenue and the parallel Magnolia Avenue are almost unique in Fayetteville. They were built in the 1920s in the "horse and buggy days" and would not meet city street standards today. Christy Pettit's request to turn the Fayetteville antebellum mansion into a school was turned down in a unanimous vote by the Fayetteville Zoning Commission. Court-ordered Taser Policy by JEFF THOMPSON Fair Oaks: Past and Future by JEFF THOMPSON NEWS AND EVENTS