RUSK - The Texas Rangers have officially launched an investigation into an alleged case of police brutality, which left a Cherokee County man with a broken ankle.
Cherokee County District Attorney Elmer Beckworth said he has asked Texas Ranger Rudy Flores to conduct an investigation into the allegations made by John Brown, of Alto after the man reported he had been the victim of brutality at the hands of a veteran Cherokee County sheriff's deputy.
Beckworth said his office asked Flores to investigate the allegations after Brown and witnesses made statements to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and Brown called the FBI.
"We are only one or two steps into this right now, so I really cannot comment on the investigation at this time. We have spoken to some of the witnesses and will be taking statements from others in the next week," he said.
Brown, 27, said he was in his home cooking last week when his father asked him to go outside and see why the family dogs were barking.
Brown claims he saw an unidentified man lurking around his property with a flashlight and went to investigate.
He contends the man, Cherokee County sheriff's Deputy Sgt. Jamie Beene, who was searching for an unrelated suspect, arrested him for no reason and broke his ankle and beat him while Brown was handcuffed behind his back.
Brown was subsequently arrested on a misdemeanor charge of interfering with a police investigation and underwent surgery that night to repair his shattered ankle, which entailed three plates and 16 pins being used during the surgery.
Sheriff James Campbell said he believes the investigation will clear his deputy and that additional charges may be brought against Brown.
Brown's attorney, Hulon Brown, a former district attorney and Texas legislator, said he has warned his client not to give any statements to Beckworth regarding the misdemeanor case against his client.
Hulon Brown said the sheriff's department's earlier statement of filing an assault on a public servant charge against his client or subsequent probation revocation by the district attorney's office would be preposterous.
"I don't believe they would have the guts to do it. My client was in his own yard and had nothing to do with what was going on. He was arrested and brutalized," he said.
Brown is currently serving probation on an assault against a public servant conviction in 1998, but he said that charge began as two counts of attempted capital murder, which were unjustified.
"The only reason I am serving probation on that charge is because I ran out of money to fight it. I didn't do anything wrong then and I didn't do anything wrong now," he said. "That man was just out of control."
Hulon Brown said his client is innocent and should be compensated by the sheriff's department for his injuries if the allegations are proved true.
Witnesses told the Morning Telegraph for Sunday's edition they saw Beene repeatedly kick and beat Brown and called him names.
Brown said he could not believe the actions that occurred that night or that the sheriff's deputies did not call for an ambulance.
Alto Police Chief Charles Barron said it was his officer, who arrived on the scene after the alleged beating, who called for an ambulance.
"I really can't say much at this time, but I will say it was my officer who called for the ambulance and not the Cherokee County Sheriff's Department," he said.
Campbell said Beene's personnel file reflects no entries in his disciplinary file and that the sergeant has received four written commendations and numerous verbal accommodations from both his supervisors and the public.
"He (Beene) is still on street patrol. When someone walks in and just accuses one of my officers of doing something, it is just an allegation. I've never really had to deal with this before, but at this point it is just an allegation," Campbell said. "We will have to wait and see what the other agencies find in their investigations."
Kenneth Dean covers police, fire, public safety organizations, Cherokee and Rusk counties. He can be reached at 903.596.6353. e-mail: news@tylerpaper.com"> news@tylerpaper.com
