Ex-Inglewood Police Officer Jeremy Morse $$Got Paid$$

[Common Sense]

Ex-Inglewood officer awarded $1.6 million for firing over beating

Tuesday January 18, 2005
By CHRIS T. NGUYEN
Associated Press Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) A former Inglewood police officer who was fired for punching a black teenager and slamming him against a patrol car in 2002 on Tuesday was awarded $1.6 million by a jury that heard a discrimination lawsuit he and his disciplined partner brought against the city.

A 12-member jury voted 11-1 in favor of the verdict for Jeremy Morse, and the panel voted unanimously to award $810,000 his partner, Bijan Darvish, said defense attorney Gregory Smith.

``This is not the first time police officers have been trapped in race situations where they suffered unfairly,'' Smith said in a phone interview after the verdict was read in Superior Court. ``This will have an impact in police departments across the country. Now police officers have a recourse in civil court to address their grievances.''

Morse, 27, said he was ``very happy with the verdict.''

Morse had previously faced a charge of assault but a judge dismissed it in February 2004 after two juries deadlocked. A jury acquitted Darvish of filing a false report.

On July 6, 2002, a bystander videotaped Morse punching handcuffed Donovan Jackson in the head and slamming him onto a patrol car. Morse, who is white, said he reacted to Jackson grabbing his testicles. The videotape was recorded from an angle that doesn't show whether the grabbing actually occurred.

Morse was fired in September 2002 and Darvish was suspended for 10 days for filing a false police report that failed to mention his partner's conduct. The two men filed a discrimination lawsuit against the city of Inglewood in February 2003, alleging reverse discrimination, Smith said.

Inglewood Police Chief Ronald Banks and Mayor Roosevelt Dorn are both black.

Banks said in a phone interview Tuesday that race was not a factor in his decision to fire Morse and suspend Darvish, who still works as an Inglewood police officer.

``I based my decision on their actions and what I thought their responsibility was. It was based purely on the facts,'' he said. ``I was shocked at not only the verdict but the size of the awards. It was somewhat ridiculous.''

In a September decision, arbitrator Donald Anderson said the city of Inglewood violated Morse's rights by firing him without properly investigating the incident. Though Morse acted improperly, he did not use excessive force, the arbitrator said.

Another arbitrator, Robert Steinberg, said early last year that Darvish may not have seen Morse's conduct and also recommended that Inglewood pay his salary for the 10 days he was suspended.

[sould0ut]

whoa got damn...

[Common Sense]

Jeremy Morse is now living in Idaho. What is with Idaho and Ex L.A. Police officers. That's where alot of retired LAPD live.


Mark Furhman is up there too. Remember him?

[1111§]

Idaho= White hate groups

[Mraka]

I don`t believe the testicle story.
-If he worked at a round desk;with a marshmellow phone to not get hurt maybe.
but where are the hans if cuffed on the back?where could they be?

the video shows him at the very left(right)

[hkswb357]

I don`t believe the testicle story.
-If he worked at a round desk;with a marshmellow phone to not get hurt maybe.
but where are the hans if cuffed on the back?where could they be?

the video shows him at the very left(right)

Umm...What? LoL