The mother of a mentally ill man who died after being
taken into custody may proceed with her most significant claims against
three Springfield police officers, a federal judge has ruled. In a recent opinion, U.S. District Judge Jeanne E.
Scott rebuffed key points in the city’s motion for summary judgment,
clearing the way for Mary Sallenger, mother of Andrew Sallenger, to proceed
with excessive-force and wrongful-death claims against SPD officers Brian
Oakes and Jason Oliver, as well as Sgt. James Zimmerman. In April 2002, the three officers were dispatched to
Sallenger’s home, where Sallenger was experiencing a severe psychotic
episode. His sister, Kim Nolan, told the 911 dispatcher that her brother
was “schizophrenic bipolar manic depressive” and asked for
paramedics to be sent to the home. Instead, only SPD officers answered the
call. They arrived to find Sallenger sitting cross-legged
in his bedroom, mumbling about fishing and the colors blue and purple. When
the officers entered the bedroom, he lunged at Zimmerman. Oakes responded
by spraying Sallenger with oleoresin capsicum — pepper spray. The
three officers struggled to subdue Sallenger, striking him with their fists
and flashlights before getting enough control to place handcuffs on him.
But even after Sallenger was handcuffed, the officers struck him several
more times and used a hobble to hog-tie him. Sallenger was on his knees,
bent face-down over his bed, when other officers arrived on the scene and
noticed that he wasn’t breathing. SPD officers and emergency medical
personnel administered CPR and transported Sallenger to the hospital, but
he died a day later, never having regained consciousness [see Dusty Rhodes,
“Why Andy won’t die,” March 13, 2003]. The Sangamon County coroner’s inquest concluded
that Sallenger died as a result of “agitated delirium” and
other natural causes. However, an expert witness hired by Sallenger’s
family convinced Scott that “positional asphyxiation” may have
contributed to Sallenger’s death. “Andrew’s heart stopped because it was
beating quickly after the struggle, and needed more oxygen but could not
get it because Andrew was pinned against the bed and his diaphragm could
not expand,” Scott wrote. In ruling on summary judgment, courts consider the
evidence in the light most favorable to the side opposing the summary
judgment — in this case, Mary Sallenger. “In that light,” Scott wrote, “the
evidence is that the officers delivered repeated, closed-fist blows and
blows with flashlights to the back of Andrew’s shoulders and thighs
after Andrew was handcuffed, that the officers continued to strike Andrew
and hobbled him after he had stopped trying to kick or move, and that the
officers did not immediately put him on his side, to assist his breathing,
after hobbling him. The Court concludes when the evidence is viewed with
these assumptions, that the officers’ use of force was
excessive.” Scott also concluded that the officers were not
entitled to qualified immunity for the blows they dealt after Sallenger was
handcuffed or for their failure to position him on his side immediately
after hobbling him. She let stand the claim that officers intentionally
inflicted emotional distress on Sallenger. Such claims can be appealed immediately, and the city
has filed an appeal to the Seventh Circuit. But Peoria attorney David
Kleczek, who represents Mary Sallenger, says that the Seventh Circuit has
recently been denying qualified-immunity claims, and he’s optimistic
that the case will go to trial this year. The city won a portion of its motion. Scott denied
the family’s claim that the officers attempted an unlawful arrest and
then failed to obtain medical assistance for Sallenger. Scott also denied
the family’s claim that the city failed to train officers to handle
the mentally ill or the proper use of a hobble. Finally, the judge
dismissed the Sallengers’ claims that the city engaged in a pattern
and practice of discriminating against the mentally ill. Former Police
Chief John Harris was also dismissed from the lawsuit. As a result of this incident, SPD took steps to
ensure that such a tragedy would never happen again. In the months after
Sallenger’s death, Harris issued a directive prohibiting the use of
hobbles such as the one used on Sallenger. And SPD established a
“critical-incident team” — a corps of officers specially
trained to deal with the mentally ill. “It’s a very important program to the
officers, and it’s a great tool on-call,” says Lt. Doug
Williamson. Unlike some specialties, for which the department
must wheedle officers into qualifying, CIT training draws plenty of
interested officers. “We have people standing in line that want to go
to the training,” Williamson says. So far, none of the officers involved in
Sallenger’s death has taken the training. This week, Oakes was
promoted to detective.
This article appears in Apr 13-19, 2006.
