Two families have come forward with a tort claim and are in the process of filing a civil lawsuit against the City of Guthrie following an incident involving a police officer, two boys and a toy gun last April.
Both Lisa Scott and Tammy Jeffries say their sons (ages 14 and 11 at the time) were scoped out by an off duty Guthrie police officer for being of mixed race when he drove by several times in his civilian car watching the boys play with a toy gun with an orange tip in front of a residence.
Guthrie News Page obtained the notice of claim that was typed on a letterhead by attorney Alexander L. Bednar dated May 11, 2012.
The claim states the off-duty officer exited his vehicle and drew his weapon on the two boys and did not identify himself as a police officer and simply started yelling at them on or about the day of April 18, 2012.
The claim says the officer saw the toy gun on the ground with the orange tip and screamed at the children “what the (expletive) is this?”
It continues to say, that the officer forced the two children to stand against a wall while continuing to point his weapon at them, causing fear and trauma.
According to a neighbor, the officer with his gun raised and pointed at the two children, told one of the mothers that she thought her son was about to be arrested. She then rushed outside and yelled at the officer asking what he was doing.
The children were later released once officers, who were dispatched by the off duty officer, arrived to the scene.
Guthrie City Attorney Randel Shadid provided a statement about the tort claim.
“We’ve already investigated this incident. The families weren’t happy with the outcome of the city’s investigation. We’re proceeding with the legal municipal process.”
Bednar goes on to say in the claim that the City of Guthrie officials have not taken action against the officer and has ratified the inappropriate behavior of the officer.
The claim asks for a minimum of $125,000 for each incident claimed (10), immediate injunction on police, investigation by a neutral entity, payment of all medical bills, pain and suffering and attorney fees.
The families Oklahoma City attorney, Bednar, currently has multiple claims against the City of Guthrie, including the case between Fazal Khan and the Halftime Bar and Grill. Related story: Local bar owner files suit against City of Guthrie
As a parent, it makes me furious that an officer of the law would point a firearm at children.
Whether race was the issue or not, you still do not point a loaded weapon at 2 innocent children. Sure, you thought the gun was real. You had that duty to check but you made a mistake, it was a toy. Man up to it and admit your mistake rather than just being an ass of a police officer trying to intimidate and scare kids. If you want respect, show some respect to the community. Also, who gets promoted in their job when you have 2 pending court cases against you for job related inncidents???????? Really GPD???? Someone could have been seriously hurt or even killed. Negligance (sp?) all around.
If the officer thought it was a real gun then he absolutely did the right thing. What a kid can’t kill someone with a gun? I have done the exact same thing as an officer.
U did the exact same thing? Did u identify urself as an officer while u were off duty? Did u cuss at the children? Did u continue to hold them up against the wall even after u realized it was a ORANGE TIP toy gun? Did u call for backup even after u realized it was an ORANGE TIP gun? If u did all of that the exact same then u should be investigated as well! Its so sad children cant even play outside without being bullied, harrassed targeted by the police!
I do believe this officer was in uniform at the time and on his way in for duty….. so identifying himself as an officer on or off duty?? Police Officers are never “off duty” in my opinion and thank them for being on their toes 24/7. If you are ever in need of one I would hate to think that just because they are not in uniform they will not protect us.
@Unbelievable: You can thank the shooters at Columbine or any of the many other instances where children have taken a weapon against their fellow classmates for the reaction a police officer takes these days…! GOOGLE – Ft. Gibson Student shoots classmates………… enough said.
As for assuming a gun is fake – If you are ever faced with someone holding a weapon with an orange tip or not – lets see how you react…. I have heard that some are painting the tips orange in hopes that someone will make that very mistake and let their guard down one time – REMEMBER: One time is all it takes with a loaded weapon! Police officers are trained to handle these situations the same no matter of race/age or gender. It’s the “mistake” or “assumptions” that something is NOT what it appears that is the difference of going home to their families after watch or being another statistic of an officer down. And it is the same to ensure you and your kids are home safe at night I assure you.