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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:12:32 GMT -5
Posted Wednesday, July 13, 2005
Concerns raised
April 2000: Officer Scott Crawford hired by the Waukegan Police Department.
April 2002: Crawford resigns from the Waukegan department amid allegations that he punched and kicked an 18-year-old man in November 2001 after he was handcuffed during the course of an arrest. A federal lawsuit filed against Crawford and the city of Waukegan is settled for an undisclosed sum.
February 2003: The Marengo Police Department hires Crawford.
June 2003: Crawford is the subject of an internal investigation for excessive use of force, which exonerates him.
February 2004: An internal investigation into Crawford’s handling of a warrant arrest prompts a memo expressing “comments of concern” but does not evolve into a formal complaint.
October 2004: Brian and Kevin Gaughan are arrested on numerous charges at Marengo’s annual Settlers’ Day festival, including aggravated battery to a police officer. They accuse Crawford of using excessive force, a charge he is cleared of by an Illinois State Police investigation. In March 2005, the Gaughans are charged with felony counts of filing a false report.
April 2005: The Marengo department places Crawford on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of three internal investigations related to him lying on his employment application, creating a “hostile” work environment and his role in a high-speed chase.
June 2005: The department suspends him and schedules a hearing to ask for his termination. The hearing has yet to take place.
July 2005: A federal lawsuit will be filed against Crawford and the city of Marengo on behalf of the Gaughan brothers for civil rights violations, excessive use of force, malicious prosecution and negligent hiring. The suit will also name three others as plaintiffs who allege Crawford of abuse and name two other officers as defendants.
Source: Daily Herald interviews, documents
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:12:58 GMT -5
Two brothers’ future, one officer’s fate A scuffle between two local men and a police officer with a history of abuse complaints leaves all three fighting for their futures .
By Garrett Ordower Daily Herald Staff Writer Posted Wednesday, July 13, 2005
How police handle hundreds of officer shootings or allegations of excessive force each year.
One. Two.
One cop. Two brothers. Two seconds. Two stories.
One. Two.
It happened that quickly.
Police officer Scott Crawford watched as Brian Gaughan, 21, argued with a 25-year-old man during Marengo’s annual Settlers’ Days festival last October.
He approached the men and told them they had two seconds to break it up.
Gaughan started walking away, but as he left he mouthed off “One, Two” to the officer. In seconds, he and his brother, Kevin, 18, were in jail, looking at charges that could put each away for years, and put their futures in peril.
The Gaughans stand accused of aggravated battery and resisting arrest. They claimed Crawford used excessive force but now also face charges of filing a false police report after the Illinois State Police exonerated the officer.
Numerous attempts to reach Crawford have been unsuccessful, including a letter hand-delivered to his residence that explained the allegations being made against him and asked for his comment for this story.
Fraternal Order of Police labor counsel Erika Raskopf said Crawford has “a good work ethic, he’s been commended, and I think he’s a solid officer.”
In his two years on Marengo’s force, Crawford has been the subject of six investigations, two for excessive force.
While he was cleared in half of them, including both excessive force claims, Crawford currently is suspended pending the outcome of three of the investigations. Marengo’s police commission soon will decide whether Crawford will be fired, the punishment his chief is seeking.
Raskopf is representing Crawford on those charges. “We’re just going to try the case before the board and be confident that he’ll be able to keep his job,” she said.
The Gaughan brothers’ parents also are confident in their sons’ innocence. Having both worked as police officers, they refuse to believe their sons would assault one of their own. They don’t believe they were that disrespectful, or, at least, that stupid. That led them to hire a private investigator, who discovered several previous charges of alleged misconduct against the 26-year-old officer, including a videotaped beating of a suspect that led to his resignation from the Waukegan Police Department.
The Gaughan brothers likely could have pleaded guilty to lesser charges and been done with the case without endangering their futures.
Kevin Gaughan, a Northern Illinois University student, aspires to be a banker or lawyer. Brian Gaughan wants to follow in his father’s footsteps, becoming a firefighter or possibly a police officer. With felony convictions, he can’t be either.
So, their father, former Arlington Heights police officer and current Glenview firefighter Brian Gaughan Sr., opted to spend thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours clearing their names.
“We raised our children to believe what’s right is right and that’s it,” Gaughan Sr. said. “There’s no compromise. You don’t admit you did something you didn’t do so you don’t get your hand slapped as hard. That’s not the way the system is supposed to work. If we have to sell the house to finance this, that’s what we’ll do.”
Fighting back
Gaughan Sr. initially took a different tack in trying to clear his sons’ names. Within days of the arrest, the Gaughan family asked Marengo Police Chief Les Kottke to contact the Illinois State Police and begin an investigation into whether Crawford used excessive force.
About a month later, Kottke wrote a memo to Crawford indicating the probe was complete and he could return to duty from paid administrative leave. The state police had cleared Crawford of any wrongdoing, but it began pressing Kevin and Brian Gaughan about why the argument started and their previous statements to police.
Gaughan Sr. became wary. He hired private investigator Paul Ciolino to look into the incident himself. Both brothers also passed privately administered lie detector tests backing up their version of events, according to a transcript of the examination.
Ciolino found witnesses backing up the brothers as well as other claims of misconduct by Crawford.
The Gaughans and three others expect to file a federal lawsuit against Crawford, two other officers and Marengo claiming civil rights violations, excessive force, malicious prosecution and negligent hiring.
Illinois State Police Special Agent William Kroncke, who investigated the case, and Master Sergeant Joe Perez, who oversaw it, both declined to comment on the specifics of their investigation of the Gaughan arrest, but they said the excessive force charges were thoroughly probed.
“I’m confident this investigation was fully investigated,” Perez said.
The Round Lake Heights Police Department has kept Crawford on part time, where he has been working 16 hours a week since November 2002.
“He does a great job for me,” Round Lake Heights Police Chief Don Johnson said.
‘I didn’t, you did’
One. Two.
One cop. Two brothers. Two seconds. Two stories.
One. Two.
Brian Gaughan approached Shawn Scott at Settlers’ Days about a skateboard taken from Brian’s 14-year-old brother, Patrick. To most idling around the two men, the argument seemed more like a discussion.
“It was actually more of an under-the-breath argument, not loud,” said Robert Beauchamp, 19, in one of several sworn statements given to private investigator Ciolino.
Beauchamp could overhear Crawford talking to fellow officer Kelly Given. Crawford said if “these two kids don’t leave each other alone, he’s going to step in and arrest them.”
“Crawford, he was like viciously smoking a cigarette, standing there,” Beauchamp said in the sworn statement. “He flicked his cigarette on the ground and got up in their face.”
Crawford asked Gaughan for his identification. He already knew Scott, as the two had numerous earlier run-ins, according to the statement.
“They just told us to break it up and that we both had two seconds or two minutes to get off the property, or else we were going to jail,” Scott said in a sworn statement. “And Brian just started walking away.
“He just looked back and said, ‘One, two.’æ”
According to Crawford’s report, Gaughan “ignored (me) and continued to walk further into the carnival area.”
Gaughan said he assumed he and Scott should walk in opposite directions.
After Gaughan said he looked back and mouthed off with the “One, Two” remark, Crawford told him to stop, that he was under arrest.
Charge: misdemeanor criminal trespass to state-supported land.
Crawford handcuffed Gaughan and, in his report, said he tried to break free.
But sworn witness statements given to Ciolino said Crawford was twisting Gaughan’s arms by yanking the handcuffs into the air as he walked him to the police station about 100 feet away.
Gaughan fell to the asphalt, landing first on his knees and then on his face.
“Crawford then grabbed him, kind of tripped him and threw him to the ground,” said 19-year-old Adam J. Johnson in a sworn statement to Ciolino.
Crawford’s police report said Gaughan “threw himself to the ground and began screaming.”
Charge: misdemeanor resisting a police officer.
Crawford said when he grabbed Gaughan’s wrists to get him off the ground, Gaughan dug his fingernails into Crawford’s wrists.
Charge: felony aggravated battery.
Then Kevin Gaughan rushed to his brother’s aid. According to Crawford’s report, he lunged into the officer’s shoulder and nearly knocked him over.
“Brian’s brother started to help because you could hear him screaming in pain still, I guess,” said Matt Hughes, 15, in a sworn statement. “And that’s when (Kevin) kind of put his hand on Crawford’s shoulder to look at his brother and everything, and the lady (Officer Given) grabbed him really hard and put handcuffs on him.”
Charges: felony aggravated battery and misdemeanor resisting a police officer.
As Crawford corralled Brian Gaughan into the police station, those looking on outside caught one last glimpse of what happened inside.
“As they are turning to shut the door, Officer Crawford … pushed him into the wall,” 15-year-old Michael Hensley said in a sworn statement.
The station’s drywall was damaged when, according to Crawford’s report, Gaughan purposely rammed his head into it.
Charge: felony criminal damage to state-supported property.
“As I walked through the door, my arms were lifted up and forced forward, causing my head to hit the wall extremely hard,” Gaughan said in his complaint to the state police. “I asked, ‘Why did you do that?’ and Crawford replied, ‘I didn’t, you did.’æ”
Drive, determination
Crawford declined to comment many times, but an examination of his personnel file obtained by the Daily Herald reveals an officer whose supervisors thought had great enthusiasm. They also cautioned he needed to show restraint.
“Ofc. Crawford in this rater’s opinion is a highly motivated officer, he enjoys the work he does, and he sets high standards for himself,” his sergeant wrote in his 15-month evaluation in Marengo. “Ofc. Crawford shows great drive, ambition and determination. With these qualities he would make an excellent detective or investigator. Ofc. Crawford’s aggressiveness requires a great demand of self discipline, it is easier to step back and re-evaluate the situation at hand rather than jumping forward with both feet.”
He was hired as a Waukegan police officer in 2000 for $43,200 a year. On his Marengo application, he said he left the more lucrative Waukegan job for “personal reasons” and answered “No” when asked if he had ever been forced to resign.
But one former official acknowledged they knew an officer didn’t decide to leave a job to make about $10,000 less a year without good reason.
“He was a young officer who had a couple of problems where he had been, and there was some concern,” said former Marengo police commission head Pat Shelton.
Within months of coming to the department, Crawford received a commendation from the Department of Children and Family Services for helping with two children left home alone as well as two for finding $40,000 of possible drug money and for breaking up a large street brawl.
Within six months, he was named to the McHenry County Gang Task Force, a post he held until his recent suspension.
Videotaped abuse
Jose Gonzalez-Suarez had been drinking. After parking his car outside his Waukegan home in the early morning hours, the 18-year-old sat in the driver’s seat and smoked a cigarette.
The license plates on the worn Chevy Cavalier he had recently bought weren’t his. So when a police car pulled up behind him, he later told police, he left the keys in the ignition and walked away.
The man’s neighbor had gotten up to use the bathroom about 2:30 a.m., saw the police car pull up and Gonzalez-Suarez walk toward his home.
The neighbor told police he heard the officer yell at and then handcuff Gonzalez-Suarez during the 2001 incident.
“The officer then began yelling in Jose’s face,” a police report said. “(The neighbor) could not make out the words. (The neighbor) then observed the officer strike Jose to the side and back of his head with an open hand three times.”
He turned Gonzalez-Suarez around to place him in the car, and the officer “kicked him like a dog,” the report said.
The neighbor got his video camera. As the neighbor and his wife talk in hushed tones, the officer on the videotape steps out of his squad car and opens the back door.
“It appeared Officer Crawford is having words with Mr. Gonzalez,” the police report obtained by the Daily Herald reads. “Officer Crawford then strikes Mr. Gonzalez with his left hand two separate times.”
A videotape of the incident shows what is described in the police report. It never was made public until now.
About a month after a Waukegan sergeant interviewed the neighbor and wrote the report, arrangements were made by attorneys representing the department and Crawford for his resignation, according to memos obtained by the Daily Herald. The charges against Gonzalez-Suarez alleging obstructing justice, resisting arrest and driving under the influence of alcohol were dropped.
Under the terms of a May 2003 severance agreement, anyone asking about Crawford would be told: “At the time of Officer Crawford’s resignation, he was a member in good standing of the department.”
A federal lawsuit filed on behalf of Gonzalez-Suarez alleging battery, false arrest and malicious prosecution was settled by Crawford and the department for an undisclosed amount, said Gonzalez-Suarez’s attorney, Jed Stone.
Cause for concern?
One year after being hired in Marengo, in February 2004, Crawford received “comments of concern” about his arrest of a man who had outstanding warrants, including one for aggravated battery to a police officer.
A memo from then-Chief Larry Mason notes Crawford went to serve the warrant with others, but when they couldn’t find the man, he hung back alone. When the suspect arrived, he saw Crawford and fled. Crawford gave chase, catching him and using pepper spray to end a struggle.
“The proper procedure would have been to contact backup, wait for them to arrive and then deal with the situation,” Mason wrote in a memo. “This would have been the safe and proper way to handle this matter. … Again, we do not want to stifle your dedication to enforcement activities, but we are concerned about this type of activity.”
Eight months after that arrest the Gaughan brothers went to the Settlers’ Day festival.
More abuse?
Private investigator Ciolino’s inquiries turned up other allegations expected to be part of the federal lawsuit. Some of the sworn statements were given with a Daily Herald reporter present. Those expected to allege excessive force in the suit include:
• Nichole Surber, 16, who broke free of handcuffs during an underage drinking arrest and tried to run. She alleges in a sworn statement that Crawford tackled her, and two other officers kept her on the ground while a police dog bit her.
“The whole time I was screaming because I couldn’t breathe and none of them would get up,” Surber said in a sworn statement.
Crawford later pulled her out of a squad car by her ankles, she said, slamming her head on the ground after she kicked at the car’s window.
• Zachary McMackin, 17, ran from Crawford during an underage drinking arrest. According to his sworn statement, Crawford later forced him to the ground, handcuffed him, hit him in the back of the head and emptied a can of pepper spray into his face.
As Ciolino investigated the Gaughan incident and the other allegations, the state police and the McHenry County state’s attorney decided the brothers committed a crime when they signed their complaints against Crawford, Special Agent William Kroncke said.
Charge: felony filing a false police report.
A grand jury agreed.
On March 1, as Brian Gaughan walked out of a barn where he had been rebuilding an engine, nearly a dozen McHenry County sheriff’s officers and Illinois State Police started yelling at him to put his hands in the air. If convicted, he faces up to 13 years in prison.
A similar police crew showed up in DeKalb to arrest Kevin Gaughan at his apartment. He faces nine years in prison.
A police family
Perhaps no one has been so surprised at the Gaughan family being on the wrong side of the police as the Gaughan family.
The family doesn’t have a problem with law enforcement. The family is law enforcement.
In addition to Gaughan Sr.’s law enforcement work, Carolyn Gaughan currently is a guard at the McHenry County jail.
At 20 years old, Gaughan Sr. left his hometown of Chicago to become a Davenport, Iowa, police officer, where he met Carolyn, his training officer.
In 1984, after she had been on the Davenport force for 10 years, and he for four, they decided to settle in Marengo.
He took a job with the Arlington Heights Police Department, and she worked for the Bartlett and Bull Valley police departments, and Motorola before becoming a jail guard.
In 1989, Gaughan Sr. decided to leave the police department to become a firefighter, believing that would give him more opportunity to help people.
So the Gaughan family didn’t exactly expect what was to come.
“I’ve been around policemen my whole life and I’ve never seen anything as appalling as what happened to my own children,” Carolyn Gaughan said.
What next?
The Gaughan brothers case remains in the pretrial stage.
On April 7 of this year, Crawford was placed on paid administrative leave pending internal investigations for three “violations of department policy” stemming from a high-speed chase, an incident involving a “hostile” work environment, and a charge of lying on his job application.
In June, the Marengo Police Department suspended Crawford without pay and set a police commission meeting to decide his fate that is set, after a delay, for Aug. 2 and, if necessary, Aug. 3.
One. Two.
One cop. Two brothers. Two seconds. Two stories.
One. Two.
Of his sons, Gaughan Sr, said, “We’re not going to have their career paths derailed because of this rogue policeman.”
Of her client, Crawford’s attorney Erika Raskopf said, “There’s always two sides to a story, and we’ll wait to have our case tried not in the media but before the board.”
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:15:15 GMT -5
Marengo cop's past unknown to officials
By JOSH STOCKINGER and ALLISON L. SMITH jstockinger@nwherald.com / asmith@nwherald.com
MARENGO – The city of Marengo unknowingly hired a police officer who was the subject of a civil-rights lawsuit in Waukegan that resulted in a $30,000 settlement to a Mexican immigrant, officials said. Officer Scott Crawford is on unpaid leave and scheduled to go before the Police and Fire Commission next month on allegations he violated department policy. Commissioners will not be able to consider the civil-rights lawsuit or a videotape of Crawford's alleged use of excessive force during a Waukegan traffic stop in 2001, commission Chairman Victor Zabelka said. Jed Stone, the attorney for the man who brought the 2001 federal lawsuit against Crawford and Waukegan, said Marengo more thoroughly should have checked Crawford's past jobs.
"The good news is that Mr. Crawford was pushed out of the Waukegan Police Department," Stone said. "The sorry news is that another police department unwittingly picked him up."
Crawford was hired by Marengo in February 2003 after he worked from 2000 to 2002 in Waukegan. He resigned for personal reasons and was in "good standing," Waukegan officials said.
Marengo Police Chief Les Kottke would not comment on Crawford's past or the latest allegations against him. Kottke replaced Chief Larry Mason in August 2004.
Stone said Waukegan officials should have disclosed to Marengo the bystander videotape of Crawford hitting and kicking a handcuffed Jose Gonzalez-Suarez during an arrest over improper license plates in November 2001.
"Somebody in Marengo should have seen the tape," Stone said. "The city [of Waukegan] certainly had it. If they didn't let Marengo know about it, they withheld it knowingly."
But Waukegan Police Chief Bill Biang said he and other Waukegan officials are bound by an agreement Waukegan made with Crawford when he left the force.
Leading up to Crawford's resignation, Waukegan police and Lake County state's attorney officials viewed the tape, police said. Crawford could have been called before Waukegan civil service commission, which handles hiring and firings of officers.
"Many times, when someone is facing possible criminal charges or termination, they choose to resign rather than take their chances before the civil service commission," Biang said. "That's what [Crawford] did in this case."
When Crawford stepped down, the city agreed to tell potential employers or other callers that Crawford left the department in good standing, Biang said.
"I couldn't release that video even if I wanted to," Biang said.
That never came up though, since Biang said he did not recall him or his staff ever getting a reference-check call from Marengo.
Numerous internal inquiries into Crawford's job performance have been made since he joined the Marengo police force. Most recently, he was placed on unpaid suspension after allegations that he withheld information on his job application, took part in an improper high-speed chase and fostered a "hostile" work environment. He could lose his job.
Patrick Shelton, chairman of the Marengo Police and Fire Commission during Crawford's hiring, said the city would not have hired Crawford had officials known about the lawsuit and videotape.
"We felt the decision to hire at the time was a good one," Shelton said.
Shelton said Crawford interviewed well, but Crawford said his work environment in Waukegan kept him from properly learning on the job. Shelton said the commission had high hopes Crawford would perform well in Marengo.
A Marengo police sergeant or detective conducted a background check for the commission, looking into Crawford's previous employment and references, Shelton said.
Erika Raskopf, attorney of the Fraternal Order of Police labor council who is representing Crawford, has said the evidence presented at next month's hearing will exonerate him.
Crawford was cleared of wrongdoing after a state police investigation into allegations that he roughed up brothers Kevin and Brian Gaughan at a Settlers' Days festival in October 2004. Both brothers were charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly filing false police reports, and Brian Gaughan was charged with felony battery in connection with his arrest at the festival.
Kevin Gaughan, 19, a student at Northern Illinois University, declined to comment and his 22-year-old brother could not be reached. The older brother was studying criminal justice at McHenry County College but changed his major to fire science, said his father, Brian Gaughan Sr.
State police refused to give his sons lie-detector tests so they took and passed independent tests, Gaughan Sr. said. The ordeal of trying to prove his sons' innocence has been costly, he said.
"It's been pretty disruptive, and very expensive," the father said.
The family hired private investigator Paul Ciolino to interview others who alleged misconduct by Crawford and to search Crawford's past, he said.
Ciolino alleged that Crawford had a history of confronting teenagers and young adults, and that a more thorough check by Marengo would have at least revealed the civil rights lawsuit.
"When you do a background investigation on somebody, you go to the courthouse and you pull a file and do a name check," Ciolino said. "Anyone would have seen a federal civil rights lawsuit filed against [Crawford] for beating up a prisoner. They would have discovered that he's got a lot of baggage."
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:15:41 GMT -5
Marengo force should step up screenings Publication Northwest Herald Date July 15, 2005 Section(s) Columnists Page The Marengo Police and Fire Commission wouldn't have to discipline Officer Scott Crawford had it properly screened him two years ago. Rogue cops usually don't make it through the hiring process. Crawford's job will be at stake when the commission meets in August. Marengo police brass say Crawford withheld information on his job application in 2003, caused a disturbance with staff, and went helter-skelter on a high-speed chase. But that could be the least of the city's problems. Crawford shouldn't wear a badge nor be allowed to carry a loaded gun. A Marengo resident, not the commission, hired a gumshoe to dig into Crawford's troubled work history. Brian Gaughan Sr., father of two Marengo brothers arrested by Crawford during last year's Settlers' Days festival, found private investigator Paul Ciolino's name on a Google search. Ciolino interviewed several people whose statements conflict with a state police investigation into the Settlers' Days arrests. He also uncovered an incriminating videotape showing then-Waukegan Officer Crawford striking a Mexican immigrant in the rear of a squad car. Crawford left the Waukegan force but not before city officials agreed to stay silent on a $30,000 judgment involving Crawford. Officials said he resigned in good standing, even though the city settled a civil-rights lawsuit filed by the immigrant man whom Crawford knocked around. Letting a poor performer walk away with an unblemished record is not unique to Waukegan. An officer brought up on internal charges might be given the option of resigning to avoid bad publicity and a legal hassle. Some departments would rather let a questionable cop go quietly than risk having to pay huge lawyer's fees or possibly be told to retain the officer. I'm familiar with two cases involving officers whose poor behavior called into question their ability to serve and protect. A black man accused an officer in a large DuPage County department of brutality. The police chief, now a politician, told me privately that he despised the cop, while in public he came to his defense. As far as I know, the officer retired with an unblemished record. In another instance, a wife-beater cop was fired after his spouse reported the abuse to police. But her refusal to testify at trial resulted in no criminal action against her husband. To their credit, members of the Police Commission took the officer's badge. Crawford was the target of a 2001 federal civil-rights complaint that cost Waukegan a bunch. Marengo officials should worry because more than one Marengo resident has threatened to sue. The state police decided to reopen the probe of the Gaughan brothers' arrests after learning about new statements from witnesses. Brothers Kevin and Brian Gaughan have their own legal problems. Both have been charged with disorderly conduct, and Brian is accused of felony battery. Crawford should be relieved of his duties before he brings more embarrassment to an otherwise fine police department. Meanwhile, the Police and Fire Commission owes it to the community to prevent another rogue cop from slipping through the cracks. archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/July/15/Columnists/55848.xml
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:19:27 GMT -5
Lawsuit against Marengo, cop in offing[published on Fri, Aug 5, 2005] By JOSH STOCKINGER jstockinger@nwherald.com MARENGO – Five people are prepared to bring a federal civil-rights lawsuit against embattled police officer Scott Crawford and the city of Marengo, a Chicago lawyer said Thursday. The complaints will range from negligent hiring by the city to the use of excessive force, malicious prosecution, false arrest, and battery at the officer's hands, attorney Kevin E. O'Reilly said. The lawsuit will name brothers Brian and Kevin Gaughan, 22 and 19; Steve Beisner, 17; Zachary McMackin, 17; and Nichole Surber, 16, as complainants, O'Reilly said, and might include others. "You don't usually get this many claims against the same person in a small town like Marengo," he said. "I've never seen anything as bad as this." With the exception of Kevin Gaughan of DeKalb, each of O'Reilly's clients lives in Marengo. All claim to have been roughed up, beaten or unnecessarily doused with chemical irritant by Crawford. Reached by telephone Thursday, Crawford said he would not comment at the advice of his attorney and because he still was employed by the Marengo Police Department. "There's two sides to every story," Crawford said. "I really want to tell mine, but I've got to wait." His attorney, Erika Raskopf of the Fraternal Order of Police Labor Council, declined to comment because the lawsuit had not been filed. Paul Ciolino, a private investigator working on O'Reilly's case, said the lawsuit would seek millions of dollars in damages and could include counts against additional officers, whom he declined to name. The investigator said he had amassed "overwhelming" amounts of evidence against Crawford and the city's past administration. Both parties should be prepared for a massive legal battle, he said. "The train has left the station, and it's heading right down to Marengo," Ciolino said. City officials said they took the news seriously but were not surprised. Mayor Don Lockhart said he had heard such legal threats since taking office in April. He added that the ordeal would not bode well for Marengo's finances, although the city had liability insurance. Marengo Police Chief Les Kottke was unfamiliar with the majority of the people who plan to file suit, he said. Only two of the five named complained about Crawford since Kottke became chief last year, he said. That complaint came from the Gaughan family and prompted Kottke to request a state police investigation into accusations that Crawford roughed up the brothers at an October festival last year. The probe cleared the officer of wrongdoing and led to the subsequent indictment of the Gaughans on charges of falsifying a police report. State police reopened the case to investigate their own handling of the probe after the Gaughans' father alleged that the investigation was botched. Spokesman Lt. Lincoln Hampton said Thursday that the investigation was ongoing. Crawford also was the target of a separate civil-rights lawsuit in 2001 when he was a Waukegan police officer. The lawsuit, which alleged that the officer repeatedly struck a handcuffed Mexican immigrant, was settled for $30,000. The Waukegan incident was captured on video. Crawford now faces separate accusations from the Marengo force that he took part in an improper high-speed chase, fostered a hostile work environment, and lied about the previous civil lawsuit on his application. A disciplinary hearing with the police and fire commission was postponed Tuesday until Aug. 18. Crawford was hired in February 2003 and has been on unpaid suspension since June. He could be fired. O'Reilly likely will file the civil lawsuit at the Northern District federal court in Chicago, he said, and expects the case to be moved to Rockford for jurisdictional purposes. He said he expected to file the lawsuit by October. archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/August/05/Main/57632.xml
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:20:54 GMT -5
Suit targets Crawford, former chief By JOSH STOCKINGER jstockinger@nwherald.com MARENGO - A Chicago attorney said he would file a multimillion-dollar civil-rights lawsuit today alleging that Marengo's former police chief failed to properly investigate and discipline Officer Scott Crawford, who is accused in the same lawsuit of beating six people. The 44-count federal lawsuit will name past chief Larry Mason, in addition to Crawford, the city of Marengo, and another officer, Kelly Given, according to documents obtained by the Northwest Herald. The lawsuit will seek $66 million in damages for two adults and four teenagers who allege that Crawford beat them. "I'm completely innocent, and the allegations are completely false," Crawford, 26, said Monday. Six counts against the former chief allege that Mason "consistently and habitually failed to conduct adequate investigations into [Crawford] and other Marengo police officers accused of using excessive force, false arrest, and malicious prosecution." Mason "accepted, promulgated and encouraged the conduct," the suit reads. Reached by telephone Monday, Mason declined to comment. According to separate documents obtained by the Northwest Herald, Mason initiated an investigation into at least one excessive-force complaint against Crawford stemming from a June 2003 arrest. In a July 2003 memo, Mason wrote, "Several individuals with knowledge of this incident were interviewed and statements were taken, which exonerate [Crawford] of any wrongdoing." In total, plaintiffs will seek $9 million in damages from Mason; $27 million from the city; $21 million from Crawford; and $9 million from Crawford and Given. The plaintiffs are Kevin Gaughan, 19, of Dekalb, and Marengo residents Brian Gaughan, 22; Nichole Surber, 17; Steven Beisner, 17, Cassandra Craft, 17; and Zachary McMackin, 17. City Attorney David McArdle said he would turn the lawsuit over to the city's insurance provider as soon as it was filed. The insurance agency will determine who will represent the city, he said. Eighteen counts against the city allege reckless hiring and reckless retention of Crawford and responsibility for alleged attacks and false arrests. Officer Given is named in two alleged incidents involving Kevin Gaughan and Surber. The Surber complaint alleges that Given and Crawford hurt the then-14-year-old girl by sitting on her during what started as an underage-drinking arrest at Marengo High School. Attempts to reach Given for comment were unsuccessful. During the arrest, the suit reads, Surber's breasts were exposed to onlookers, and Crawford allegedly refused to let Surber's friend's mother pull down the shirt. The plaintiffs' attorney, Kevin E. O'Reilly, said he planned to file the suit at the Northern District federal court in Chicago but expected the case to be moved to Rockford for jurisdictional purposes. Meanwhile, Crawford is scheduled to go before the Marengo Police and Fire Commission Thursday for a hearing into separate complaints lodged by the police department. He could be fired. archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/August/16/Main/58648.xml
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:21:17 GMT -5
Six file $30 million lawsuit against officer By Charles Keeshan Daily Herald Staff Writer
A federal civil rights lawsuit filed Monday accuses suspended Marengo police officer Scott Crawford of repeatedly abusing young people he arrested while his superiors in the police department ignored a growing list of complaints against him.
The 79-page suit, filed by two adult brothers and four teens, seeks about $30 million in compensatory and punitive damages from Crawford, former partner Kelly Given, former Marengo police Chief Larry Mason and the city of Marengo.
Marengo police Chief Les Kottke could not be reached for comment Monday. Mayor Donald Lockhart did not return a call for comment in time for publication. Crawford has declined numerous prior interview requests from the Daily Herald.
The suit stems from five separate incidents in 2003 and 2004 involving Crawford, including the arrests of brothers Kevin and Brian Gaughan during an Oct. 8 confrontation with the officer at a city festival. The incident ended with the Gaughans — Kevin, 19, of DeKalb and Brian, 22, of Marengo — jailed on felony aggravated battery charges accusing them of assaulting Crawford and another officer.
The suit, however, alleges Crawford perpetrated the violence that night, pushing a handcuffed Brian Gaughan face-first onto a paved parking lot, then slamming the man’s head into a wall inside the city’s police station.
“The defendant used physical force with the willful and specific intent to inflict unnecessary harm upon Brian Gaughan,” the suit states.
The lawsuit claims Crawford falsely arrested the Gaughans that night and trumped up the charges against them that have each facing up to five years in prison.
Two weeks before that incident, the suit alleges, Crawford and his partner physically abused 14-year-old Nichole Surber of Marengo while placing her under arrest for underage drinking. The suit contends both officers sat on the teenage girl, allowed a police dog to bite her arm unnecessarily and allowed her breasts to be exposed to a group of onlookers.
Crawford, the suit claims, then confined Surber for three hours and ignored her requests for medical attention for a lacerated arm and other injuries.
The suit alleges Crawford used excessive force against three others in 2003 and 2004:
•Steven Beisner, 17, of Marengo claims the officer slammed his head into a wall and punched him in the stomach during a June 2003 search.
•Cassandra Craft, 16, of Shorewood, Minn., alleges Crawford slammed her headfirst into a police car’s hood while twisting her arms behind her back in June 2004.
•Zachary McMackin, 17, of Marengo claims the officer emptied two cans of pepper spray into his face after a brief foot chase in November 2003.
While the suit seeks substantial financial compensation for the plaintiffs, their lawyer said Monday his clients’ primary goal is to prevent Crawford from being a cop.
“They want to stop Crawford from ever doing this again,” Chicago attorney Kevin E. O’Reilly said. “He’s clearly not suitable to be a police officer.”
Marengo police officials suspended Crawford, 26, earlier this year for three violations of department policy unrelated to the complaints in the lawsuit. Among the violations was lying on his job application. Crawford took a job in Marengo after resigning from the Waukegan police force in 2003 amid an investigation into his videotaped beating of a handcuffed suspect.
The suit lists the city and former Chief Larry Mason as defendants for hiring and retaining Crawford despite his checkered past and complaints against him during his time on the Marengo force.
“Either they knew of Crawford’s background and didn’t care or were completely reckless in doing background checks,” O’Reilly said.
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:22:12 GMT -5
Family seeks 'total exoneration' By JOSH STOCKINGER jstockinger@nwherald.com CHICAGO - Caryn Beisner broke down in tears Tuesday as she described the suffering her son allegedly endured at the hands of Marengo Police Officer Scott Crawford. Beisner's 17-year-old son, Steven Beisner of Marengo, claims that Crawford bashed his head into an alley wall in June 2003, then doused him with pepper spray. After being placed in a stuffy police cruiser with rolled-up windows, Beisner kicked out the back glass for air and immediately was pepper-sprayed by the officer again, the mother said. The boy subsequently was charged with multiple felonies in the incident, Caryn Beisner said. "Our son's life was ruined by Officer Scott Crawford," she said. "[We want to] regain our untarnished family name. We will not settle for anything less than total exoneration." Beisner and five others joined a federal civil-rights lawsuit filed Monday against Crawford, the city of Marengo, former police Chief Larry Mason and Marengo Officer Kelly Given. Family members of four plaintiffs in the lawsuit attended a news conference Tuesday in attorney Kevin E. O'Reilly's office. Brian Gaughan, 22, and Kevin Gaughan, 19; Nichole Surber, 17; Steven Beisner, 17; Cassandra Craft, 17; and Zachary Mc-Mackin, 17, claim that Crawford used excessive force against them. Crawford on Tuesday said he was "absolutely maintaining" his innocence. He said he had seen the court papers and he could not speculate as to what the families' motives were in filing the lawsuit. Paul Ciolino, a private investigator hired by the Gaughans, said Crawford targeted middle-class juveniles who either could not afford to or would be afraid to fight criminal charges lodged against them. Only brothers Brian and Kevin Gaughan filed official complaints with the police department. The 79-page lawsuit lists 44 counts against Crawford, Given, the police department and the city, each seeking $1.5 million in damages. Litigants are potentially seeking up to $66 million. But O'Reilly said the suit more likely could bring up to $9 million because of duplicate complaints. The suit also includes numerous complaints against Mason and the city for alleged reckless hiring and retention. O'Reilly said city officials knew or should have known about a separate $30,000 civil rights lawsuit against Crawford, then a Waukegan officer. The excessive force incident was caught on videotape. "[The lawsuit] was something a phone call could have uncovered," Ciolino said of Marengo's hiring practices. O'Reilly said Tuesday that it was possible the complaints against the city would be dropped if Crawford is fired after an upcoming disciplinary hearing into separate allegations lodged by the department. "If they fire him, at least they're starting to live up to some of their duties," he said. Marengo Mayor Don Lockhart said he could not comment on the suit. O'Reilly said he had intended to file the lawsuit Tuesday morning but changed his mind late Monday and filed it then. He said he had to file the suit before Oct. 8 -- a year after one of the alleged incidents -- because of statutes. Ciolino said more people are coming forward with stories of alleged abuse involving Crawford. He said new complaints could be forthcoming, including one possibly naming Illinois State Police, which cleared Crawford of wrongdoing after investigating the Gaughan brothers' allegations that he roughed them up at a festival last year. "It's just a matter of time," Ciolino said. "This is never-ending." archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/August/17/Main/58749.xml
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:22:42 GMT -5
Civil rights suit stems from investigation Private investigator helps case against Marengo officer
By Garrett Ordower Daily Herald Staff Writer Posted Wednesday, August 17, 2005
There was only one set of tire tracks on the deserted street in Marengo, and it would soon be covered by the blustery, steady snowfall. Where the tracks stopped sat a car, and in it private investigator Paul Ciolino quizzed 17-year-old Zachary McMackin about his arrest in the town of 8,000 a year ago. A court reporter sat in the passenger’s seat.
Still wearing his pajamas, McMackin described being tackled by officer Scott Crawford and then having two cans of pepper spray emptied into his face.
Then, toward the end of the interview last December, he mentioned a couple of other teenagers who also had stories about Crawford.
“What started as a simple criminal defense case has turned into an unbelievable civil rights case,” Ciolino said at a news conference Tuesday, announcing a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against Crawford, his partner, officer Kelly Given, former Chief Larry Mason and the city of Marengo.
The 79-page suit filed late Monday seeks about $1.5 million in damages for each of the six named plaintiffs, for a total of $9 million. Some of the named plaintiffs are the parents of minors who allege police abuse. It argues both that the officers violated the plaintiffs’ civil rights through excessive force, battery and false arrest, and that the department should never have hired Crawford.
Crawford has repeatedly declined to comment, and could not be reached Tuesday. His Fraternal Order of Police attorney, Erika Raskopf, has said he will be vindicated on the charges brought against him by the Marengo police administration.
Marengo Chief Les Kottke referred comments to city attorney David McArdle, who said the city is waiting to see the outcome of the police commission hearing before making any comment, and that the federal lawsuit would be handled by the city’s insurance company.
Given did not return a call for comment, and Mason could not be reached.
Other accusations
Ciolino and attorney Kevin E. O’Reilly described the 26-year-old Crawford as a man on a rampage against teenagers in the central McHenry County town, and that his department was negligent and reckless in hiring him in February 2003 and keeping him on the police force. According to documents obtained by the Daily Herald, he resigned from the Waukegan Police Department after being videotaped beating a suspect.
But his days on the Marengo force could be numbered. On Thursday, the city’s police commission will resume hearing the department’s case that he be fired for three violations unrelated to the allegations in the federal lawsuit. He’s been accused of lying on his application, acting improperly and creating a hostile work environment.
He also was accused of wrongdoing in three previous complaints, including two for excessive force, but was later cleared.
Except for the Gaughan brothers, none of the other four plaintiffs filed a formal complaint with the police department or another agency about the alleged conduct.
Kevin and Brian Gaughan are still facing numerous felony charges from the arrest by Crawford and Given that could lead to jail time. They have a court appearance later this month.
Tight-knit town
In a small town like Marengo, news, gossip and rumors have a way of traveling fast. So when Ciolino started asking witnesses what they saw on the night brothers Brian Gaughan, 22, and Kevin, 18, were arrested for charges including felony aggravated battery and resisting arrest, the accusations piled up faster than that December snow.
The Gaughan brothers had been at the Settlers’ Day carnival on the night of October 8, 2004, when Crawford told Brian he had two seconds to leave because he said he saw a fight escalating. As Brian Gaughan walked away, he mouthed off “One, Two,” to the officer.
The Gaughan brothers were both arrested, with Crawford claiming they assaulted him and Given, and the brothers insisting the were victims of excessive force. The Illinois State Police cleared Crawford of any wrongdoing, though the state police are now taking another look at that investigation.
When Brian Gaughan Sr. became wary of the tone of the state police’s investigation, he hired Ciolino to interview more than 20 witnesses. It soon became clear those witnesses had stories of their own, and knew others who did.
“Everybody knows each other,” Ciolino said of the town.
So Ciolino made his way through Marengo, going from one person to the next, one story to the next.
McMackin described in a sworn statement how in November 2003, he and some friends were drinking, spotted Crawford and decided to run. After a foot chase, he slipped and fell, and Crawford jumped on top of him and handcuffed him.
Then, McMackin said he hit him in the face.
“And then he turned me around after I was handcuffed and put a whole can of pepper spray in my face,” McMackin said in a sworn statement.
At the end of the interview, McMackin mentioned another name, Steven Beisner.
“Make sure you go talk to him,” said McMackin, who plans to soon enlist in the U.S. Navy.
When Ciolino went to talk to Beisner, the boy told a similar story. In June 2003, according to the federal lawsuit, Crawford tried to search him for no reason then slammed his head against the wall, beat him and used pepper spray.
McMackin and Beisner, like the rest of the plaintiff’s, have only minor arrests, traffic tickets and local ordinance violations on their records.
‘I couldn’t breathe’
At the press conference Tuesday, the parents of those named in the lawsuit spoke briefly about their personal experiences, at times almost breaking into tears before television cameras and reporters at O’Reilly’s downtown office.
Nichole Surber’s mother described how her 14-year-old daughter had been drinking at a football game and was approached by Crawford. After giving her sobriety tests, Given told her she was under arrest and the girl tried to run. Soon, Crawford and two other officers put her facedown on the ground and all sat on her back. Given’s police dog bit her, Surber said in a sworn statement, and then she was handcuffed.
“The whole time I was screaming, because I couldn’t breathe and none of them would get up,” Surber said in a sworn statement.
As they went to put her in the car, her mother Melissa Kelley said at the press conference, they kept her shirt lifted up so that all the bystanders could see her nearly half-naked.
Then, they put her facedown in her car, Surber said in a sworn statement, and after she kicked at the window Crawford grabbed her ankles and yanked her out of the car, smacking her face on the side of the car and the ground.
As for his clients, Ciolino said he wants them to be able to move past their arrests and their treatment at the hands of a “rouge cop.” Some, he said, pleaded guilty to lesser charges in order to avoid the hassle and high-cost of the court system.
“There’s not a bag egg amongst them,” he said. “We want to get guilty pleas vacated and get these kids’ lives back.”
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:23:54 GMT -5
Embattled cop told of past woes[published on Sun, Aug 21, 2005] By JOSH STOCKINGER jstockinger@nwherald.com In fall 2002, Round Lake Heights Police Chief Don Johnson welcomed a young cop into his office. The police officer wanted a job. The chief had questions. The name Scott Crawford had not yet made headlines. "When I look at an application, and it says you've been a cop someplace else – a place like Waukegan – and you left there, it usually sends up a red flag," Johnson said of his interview with Crawford. Johnson said he asked Crawford why he had resigned from the Waukegan force earlier that year. "[Crawford] was just straightforward and told me what had happened," Johnson said. "He admitted he made a mistake and said it wouldn't happen again. He wanted a second chance, and I took him at his word." Johnson said Crawford told him of a federal civil-rights lawsuit filed against him in 2001. The lawsuit, which alleged that Crawford repeatedly struck a handcuffed man sitting in the back of a squad car, was settled for $30,000 after a videotape of the incident surfaced. Crawford, 26, said he wanted to be upfront about the lawsuit when looking for a new job. "That's how I operate," he said Friday. "Whether I got the job or not, it's important that I be honest." The Marengo Police Department says Crawford did not disclose the lawsuit to past police and fire commissioners when he sought an additional full-time position in late 2002. The department now seeks to have him fired for lying on a job application and other charges of leading a high-speed chase and being disruptive. A hearing into the accusations has been delayed three times, most recently Thursday, and now is scheduled for Aug. 30. Department attorney Mark Gummerson said Crawford answered "no" to a question on the application that specifically asked whether he was named in any lawsuits at the time. Gummerson said he believed that former Police Chief Larry Mason and past commissioners knew that Crawford had problems in Waukegan but not of the lawsuit. Meanwhile, six people who claim that Crawford beat them or falsely arrested them as a Marengo officer have slapped Crawford, the city, Mason and Officer Kelly Given with a new multimillion-dollar civil-rights lawsuit. Their attorney alleges that the city recklessly hired and retained a "rogue cop." Crawford would say only that he is innocent of the charges lodged against him by the department and the plaintiffs. He would not comment on whether he told the Marengo Police and Fire Commission about his past. Both Mason and former Commissioner Pat Shelton, who now is a Marengo alderman, have said they did not know of the Waukegan civil-rights lawsuit. They could not be reached for comment Friday. Johnson said the application for employment in Round Lake Heights did not ask whether an officer had been involved in a federal lawsuit. He said Crawford offered the information on his own. "He didn't hide anything," Johnson said. Crawford is a "good officer" and still works about 16 hours a week in Round Lake Heights, Johnson said. Mason gave Crawford approval to keep the part-time position after he started working in February 2003 in Marengo, according to a department memo obtained by the Northwest Herald. Johnson said no one had complained about Crawford in the two-plus years he had worked in Round Lake Heights. The chief brushed off allegations that Crawford targeted teenagers, adding that he had made no juvenile arrests. "He's a good officer, and he does a great job for us," Johnson said. "I stand behind Scott." Johnson said the outcome of a disciplinary hearing in Marengo and the civil-rights lawsuit would have no affect on Crawford's employment in Round Lake Heights, an 11-officer force in northwestern Lake County. "If it were a criminal matter, it would be different," he said. Crawford said he worked for the Lake County Sheriff's Marine Unit over the summer of 2002 before going to Round Lake Heights. He patrolled the Chain O' Lakes and Lake Michigan in a boat, he said. archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/August/21/Main/59110.xml
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:24:35 GMT -5
Embattled Marengo cop resigns Publication Northwest Herald Date August 31, 2005 Section(s) Main Page By JOSH STOCKINGER jstockinger@nwherald.com MARENGO - After weeks of maintaining his innocence, Officer Scott Crawford resigned Tuesday from the Marengo Police Department, saying he had struck a deal that was "best for both parties." Department brass declined to comment on details of the resignation, which was effective immediately. Their attorney, Mark Gummerson, said not talking was part of the agreement. Marengo Deputy Police Chief Joe Hallman had accused Crawford, 26, of three acts of misconduct and sought to have him fired. But the complaints were dropped once the second-year officer quit. Applause erupted from an audience of more than 30 people who turned out for Crawford's disciplinary hearing, which lasted about two minutes. Crawford stayed behind closed doors during the proceedings. "I'm definitely relieved to have it over with," he said. Marengo officials would not say whether the allegations against Crawford would be disclosed to other police forces where he might seek future employment. Crawford said he planned to keep a part-time position with the Round Lake Heights Police Department and hoped to continue working in law enforcement. City officials have said Crawford's last employer, the Waukegan Police Department, did not tell them of an excessive-force lawsuit against Crawford when inquiring about his work record in 2002. The federal civil-rights lawsuit settled for $30,000, and Crawford resigned after a videotape showing him striking a handcuffed suspect surfaced. Marengo officials said they were told Crawford left "an officer in good standing." Private investigator Paul Ciolino, who gathered evidence for a separate civil-rights suit naming Crawford and the city of Marengo, among others, said he was not surprised that Crawford quit Tuesday. But he blasted Marengo officials for not pressing Crawford's termination. "I think the city of Marengo took the coward way out," Ciolino said. The federal civil-rights suit that Ciolino worked on seeks millions of dollars in damages from Crawford, his partner, the former police chief and the city of Marengo. The suit accuses Crawford of beating and falsely arresting six plaintiffs, mainly teenagers, and the city of reckless hiring and retention. Crawford has denied the allegations. Crawford also said he is innocent of the complaints that he lied on his job application, took part in an improper high-speed chase, and fostered a hostile work environment at the Marengo force. He would not speculate as to why the department brought the charges against him. Crawford decided to resign after "careful consideration" with his attorney and family, he said. "It was best for both parties - myself and the city," Crawford said. Crawford declined to comment on whether he received severance pay or benefits as part of the deal. He said he planned to spend time with his wife and 2-year-old son while trying to decide his next career move. Several current Marengo police officers chatted with Crawford outside city hall after the hearing. Crawford expressed regret over leaving the force. "I enjoyed my time here," he said. "But I had to do what was best for myself and for my family." archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/August/31/Main/60051.xml
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:25:00 GMT -5
Officer leaves job before his hearing By Garrett Ordower Daily Herald Staff Writer Posted Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Officer Scott Crawford resigned from the Marengo Police Department on Tuesday night in what he called an “amicable parting,” just as a hearing was to begin on allegations that could have led to his firing.
The resignation will likely have repercussions on a multi-million-dollar civil lawsuit accusing him of brutality and on ongoing criminal cases, including one against two brothers charged with assaulting him.
The department wanted to fire him for lying on his job application and fostering a hostile work environment. His resignation avoided a public airing of the department’s case, and Crawford maintained his innocence.
“I’m relieved it’s over,” the 26-year-old officer said. “I’m glad it’s done. …. I did what was best for me and my family.”
Neither Crawford nor the department would discuss the specifics of the agreement, such as whether he would receive severance pay or insurance. The Marengo city council will decide next month whether to approve the agreement, at which point the terms would become public, officials said.
This marks the second time Crawford has resigned from a police department. In 2003 he left the Waukegan Police Department after being videotaped beating a handcuffed suspect, according to materials obtained by the Daily Herald.
That resignation happened quietly, while this one took place as dozens of people and the media watched. Many of those in attendance at the hearing are involved with the federal civil rights lawsuit filed earlier this month against Crawford and the department alleging that he brutalized six young people and the department ignored his conduct.
What the resignation means for that lawsuit and criminal cases where Crawford will likely be called as a witness remains to be seen. Brothers Brian Gaughan, 22, and Kevin, 18, have a court appearance at 9 a.m. today on charges they assaulted Crawford. The McHenry County State’s Attorney’s office has said they would pay attention to the hearing and decide whether it affects their case.
“How do you bring him in to testify now?” private investigator Paul Ciolino said after the hearing. “Every day (the state’s attorney) goes forward, they’re digging themselves a bigger hole. They have an opportunity to do the right thing, and I hope they do it.”
Crawford — who continues to work part-time as a Round Lake Heights police officer — said he looks forward to spending time with his wife and 2-year-old son and deciding what the future holds.
“I hope to (continue working in law enforcement), if that’s what I choose,” he said.
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:25:45 GMT -5
Marengo police officer accused of brutality quits Resignation keeps details of inquiry secret; suit continuesBy Tim Kane Special to the Tribune Published August 31, 2005 A Marengo police officer who is being accused in federal court of police brutality resigned from the Police Department on Tuesday before the start of a disciplinary hearing into departmental allegations of misconduct. In exchange for his resignation, police officials agreed not to disclose the details of the internal allegations against Scott Crawford, according to authorities. Police officials and Crawford's attorney, Erika Raskopf, would not comment. Crawford was suspended without pay from the department on June 17 after Deputy Police Chief Joseph Hallman alleged that Crawford violated department policy during a high-speed chase, created a hostile work environment for another officer and failed to disclose pertinent information on his employment application. The news of Crawford's resignation came as the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners convened to discuss the allegations against him. About a dozen people, including plaintiffs in the federal lawsuit against Crawford, were at the meeting, and many applauded when his resignation was announced. Some expressed concern, however, that Crawford's resignation prevented departmental allegations of misconduct from being aired. Paul Ciolino, a Chicago private detective working with some of the plaintiffs, said Crawford could be eligible to work for another police department because he resigned rather than being fired. Crawford didn't attend the hearing. He currently works part-time for the Round Lake Heights Police Department in Lake County, Ciolino said. Earlier this month, two brothers accused Crawford of police brutality in federal court. Also named in the suit were the City of Marengo, former Police Chief Larry Mason and Officer Kelly Given. Four minors joined the suit, which seeks $66 million for 44 counts that include claims of excessive force and false arrest against Crawford and Given. The suit alleges that Crawford used excessive force against Brian Gaughan, 22, of Marengo. Gaughan was standing in the police parking lot when, without provocation, Crawford handcuffed him, raised his arms in a way that caused pain and forced him to fall face-first to the pavement, according to the lawsuit. Kevin Gaughan, 19, of DeKalb alleges that he was falsely arrested by Given when he tried to help his brother. Brian Gaughan has been charged with damaging government property, which refers to the police station. The brothers also have been charged with making false statements to Illinois State Police, who are investigating their allegations against the Marengo officers. Brian Gaughan also is charged with felony aggravated battery against Crawford. The suit also alleges that Marengo officials, including Mason, should have known about allegations of police brutality made against Crawford when he worked for the Waukegan Police Department from 2000 to 2002. Crawford joined the Marengo Police Department in 2003. chicagotribune.com/news/local/northwest/chi-0508310200aug31,1,2668590.story?
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:26:26 GMT -5
Secrecy cause for concern Publication Northwest Herald Date September 04, 2005 Section(s) Columnists Page Last week, embattled Marengo police officer Scott Crawford resigned. The deal Crawford cut with the city requires both parties to keep the agreement secret. And that, as much as anything, is disturbing. "I cannot comment," Marengo Mayor Donald Lockhart said. "I have no comment at this time." Crawford, 26, has been facing allegations of misconduct on several fronts. He's been sued by six people who allege that he used excessive force in arresting them. That lawsuit is pending. Separately, Marengo officials had sought to fire Crawford on three other, unrelated matters. Crawford was accused of failing to disclose that he had been involved in a civil-rights lawsuit in Waukegan that was filed after he hit a handcuffed man who was seated in the back seat of his squad car. The Waukegan police department settled for $30,000. Also, Marengo officials accused Crawford of creating a hostile work environment and of going on an improper high-speed chase. All three allegations are serious, and termination on any of the three would be justified. Police departments should take disciplinary action if they have a problem with an officer's performance. Crawford's resignation raises some questions. Obviously some people in Marengo feel burned by Crawford because they say he did not disclose the Waukegan incident. But aren't Marengo officials essentially setting up another department by agreeing to keep their concerns about Crawford secret? If Crawford is a bad officer, a disciplinary hearing in this case would have been appropriate. It's a high-profile case that has generated a lot of concern in the community. Instead we have secrecy. How much money did Crawford get in this agreement? City officials will not say, although this newspaper has filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act, so it will come out. The situation with Crawford continues to be frustrating for everyone involved. For example, although six people have alleged that Crawford used excessive force, only two of them ever made a complaint to the police department. And that complaint, filed by Brian Gaughan, 22, and Kevin Gaughan, 19, triggered a state-police investigation that cleared Crawford. The state police since have reopened the investigation, which means one of two things: either the first investigation was a whitewash or the state police simply are reacting to public pressure. Meanwhile, Marengo officials are saying that Crawford was a bad officer who deserved to be fired for reasons that can't be disclosed, but the reasons are not the reasons cited by the Gaughans and their four co-plaintiffs. Got it? I don't. archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/September/04/Columnists/60455.xml
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Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 6:27:42 GMT -5
Council OK's Crawford settlement Publication Northwest Herald Date September 13, 2005 Section(s) Main Page By JOSH STOCKINGER jstockinger@nwherald.com MARENGO - The Marengo Police Department's efforts to oust former officer Scott Crawford on grounds of alleged misconduct will not be disclosed to agencies where Crawford might seek future jobs. The city council approved a settlement Monday that required officials to issue only a "general" letter of reference, including Crawford's years on the force, his pay and position, to prospective employers. "The circumstances surrounding the resignation of [Crawford] shall remain confidential," according to a copy of the agreement obtained by the Northwest Herald through a Freedom of Information Act request. Crawford resigned Aug. 30 before a disciplinary hearing into charges that he lied on his job application, took part in an improper high-speed chase, and fostered a "hostile" working environment. The department dropped the allegations in exchange for his resignation. Crawford, 26, also will get $10,699.53 for back pay to June 17, when he was suspended. The figure includes an additional 30 days of his $43,500 annual salary as part of the agreement. "I'm just happy that it's all done and behind me," Crawford said Monday. Crawford's resignation in Marengo marked the second time in recent years that he has quit a police force after being accused of wrongdoing. He resigned from the Waukegan Police Department in 2002 after being named in a civil rights suit that alleged excessive force against an immigrant. The suit settled for $30,000 after a videotape surfaced showing Crawford hitting a handcuffed man. The suit also was one reason the Marengo force sought to have him fired. Brass had alleged that Crawford lied about the lawsuit on his application when he came to Marengo in 2003. Officials also said Waukegan authorities did not give them details of Crawford's resignation when they checked references, but received only general information about him. Now, past and present Marengo leaders are entangled in a separate civil rights lawsuit accusing Crawford and another officer of false arrests and battery of six plaintiffs over the last two years. Crawford said the city has agreed to represent him in the case, which seeks millions of dollars in damages. Under the agreement reached Monday, he cannot hold the city liable for any specific actions on his part, he said. Crawford said getting a "neutral" reference from Marengo officials in the future, similar to the way Waukegan handled his resignation, was not as much of a selling point in the settlement as was the compensation. A husband and father, Crawford has lived on part-time pay from his second job at Round Lake Heights Police Department since June. Marengo officials were mum about the agreement Monday. Mayor Don Lockhart, Deputy Police Chief Joe Hallman and City Administrator Scott Hartman declined to comment. Alderman Jack Genot said he was happy to have closure, even though the accusations did not make it to a formal hearing. "I see it as breaking even," Genot said. "He left on his own free will, rather than put the gloves on, I guess you could say." archive.nwherald.com/archive_detail.php?archiveFile=./pubfiles/nwh/archive/2005/September/13/Main/61277.xml
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