Feds preparing for third trial of Madison police officer for Indian grandfather takedown
By Challen Stephens | cstephens@al.com AL.com
Huntsville, AL /storypackage /#article_inset Article
The federal government is preparing to try Officer Eric Parker for a third time.
"I think there is a video of what happened that I think is compelling evidence," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Posey who has twice presented that video to a jury.
Posey has twice asked a jury to convict Officer Eric Parker for excessive force in slamming down and seriously injuring Sureshbhai Patel, a 57-year-old Indian citizen out for a morning walk.
Twice the jury has split.
Last time the jury had the case for more than three days before emerging on Nov. 4 to announce they could not agree on a verdict. Outside the courthouse after that second mistrial, Posey said he would like to present the case again. And there now appears to be federal support for a third attempt.
During a telephone conference late Friday, Posey told the judge that the federal government indeed intended to try Parker again.
"If she grants his motion, then the case is over...if she denies the motion, then we're on for trial."
However, the government cannot move forward until the judge handles one last piece of business from the last trial. After the judge dismissed the hung jury two weeks ago, the defense in chambers moved to acquit.
U.S. District Judge Madeline Hughes Haikala has yet to rule on that motion.
"If she grants his motion, then the case is over," said Posey during an interview today, adding that decision could not be appealed. "If she denies the motion, then we're on for trial."
The federal civil rights charge carries up to 10 years in prison.
There are four components to the charge. Both sides agree that on Feb. 6 in Madison, Parker was acting as a law officer. Both sides also agree that Patel was injured. Instead, the last two trials have turned on whether the takedown was excessive and whether Parker acted willfully.
Parker twice testified he lost his balance and fell. He testified Patel pulled away and did not listen to police commands and could have been reaching for a weapon. Patel has testified that he does not speak English and did not resist and did not pull away. Numerous police officers and police experts have testified for both sides.
Throughout both trials, defense attorney Robert Tuten has moved the court to throw out the case, arguing the government failed to establish the basic elements of the charge. In the middle of the second trial, Haikala held that the determination of whether Parker acted willfully or not is a matter for a jury.
Jurors contacted by AL.com said the first jury deadlocked 10-2 in favor of acquittal. The judge took steps to keep the media out of jury selection in the second trial. No jurors have come forward and the split on the second jury has not been made public.
Meanwhile, Parker also faces a misdemeanor assault charge in Limestone County for the takedown of Patel. That charge carries up to one year in jail. The state case has been postponed repeatedly pending resolution of the more serious federal charge.
As of now, there is a status conference set for Dec. 9 before District Judge Jeanne Anderson in Limestone County.
Posey said the federal government would have 70 days from the time of the judge's ruling to begin a new trial. He said he could not recall ever having handled a third trial for the same criminal charge.
Posey said the prosecution would likely change some things for a third trial. He said some jurors are clearly persuaded by the video of the takedown. "I'm just trying to figure out how to convince those who are not," said Posey.