Firefighter says police arrested him without cause and broke his arm, files suit against city

A Lawrence firefighter suing the city says he voiced his disapproval over what he deemed to be police brutality, and then left the scene under arrest and with a broken arm.

The lawsuit, which accuses the Lawrence Police Department of using both excessive and negligent force, could cost the city nearly a quarter of a million dollars.

Witnesses say one officer bashed a man’s head against a squad car, then “manhandled” and “beat” Lawrence firefighter Miguel Armenta after police arrived at Lawrence’s VFW hall, 1801 Massachusetts St., to break up an argument on the afternoon of April 19, 2014.

However, police say nobody was beaten and that officers acted within their rights to keep the peace.

Armenta and his attorney, Jerry Levy, filed the civil lawsuit on Oct. 20, 2014. A jury trial in the case is scheduled to begin in September.

The lawsuit lists the City of Lawrence, Lawrence police officers Timothy Froese, Frank McClelland and Sgt. Craig Shanks as defendants.

The lawsuit is seeking $225,000 in compensation for Armenta’s injuries.

The lawsuit claims three points where the defendants are at fault:

• Use of excessive force.

• Supervisory liability of Shanks.

• Negligent use of force.

Lawrence City Attorney Toni Wheeler declined to comment for this article, but in court filings she denied Armenta’s claims that officers used excessive force. Instead, she argued they acted “within the scope of their employment.”

After Armenta was arrested he was found guilty of interfering with his own arrest; however, he was also acquitted of two other interfering with law enforcement charges.

Armenta also declined to comment for this article.

Ball game and argument

On Saturday, April 19, 2014, Armenta — a U.S. Navy veteran who served in the first Gulf War — and a group of friends and VFW members rented a party bus to attend a Kansas City Royals game.

The following details come from Douglas County District Court documents, which include transcripts of witness and police officer testimony:

An argument broke out between one of the bus riders — a Matthew Freeborn –and his girlfriend. The argument intensified in the parking lot of the VFW, and a nearby resident called the police.

At the same time another VFW member came outside to intervene in the argument. He separated Freeborn from his girlfriend and put him into a truck, effectively ending the conflict.

Once Freeborn was inside the truck, Lawrence Police Officer Frank McClelland arrived on the scene, ordered him out of the vehicle and placed him in handcuffs.

McClelland, in court documents, said he was dispatched to the scene expecting to find a fight involving four men. He described Freeborn as “intoxicated and uncooperative and belligerent,” and soon called for backup.

Witnesses said as several officers worked to put Freeborn into a patrol car, McClelland became aggressive.

“After Matt was detained, he was handcuffed, the police officer walked him to the car … and Matt was saying, ‘What did I do wrong? What did I do wrong?'” VFW Member Joe Gardenhire said in the court filings. “The police officer reached, grabbed Matt by the back of the neck, and threw him twice into the car head first or face first.

“I could see from the gate that there was a clear dent in the side of the vehicle that they — that they used Matt’s head to dent it,” he added.

Gardenhire said other members of the crowd — mainly standing on the VFW’s patio — were swearing and shouting, calling the act “unprofessional.” At the time Gardenhire said he was standing by the patio’s gate because he didn’t want the crowd to interfere with the officer.

Once Freeborn was in the patrol car, officers headed toward the patio, saying they wanted to make sure the scene remained calm. That is when police began to interact with Armenta, the off-duty firefighter and the plaintiff in the lawsuit.

“So when that whole thing went down and they started approaching the gate, Miguel (Armenta) was saying, ‘I can talk to them. I can talk to them. I know them. I can talk to them,'” Gardenhire said.

Saying they heard or saw people scuffling on the patio, the officers entered the patio area.

Additional arrests

On the patio, officers began arresting people after seeing some of them “scuffling,” according to court documents.

As Lawrence police officer Timothy Froese watched another officer arrest a woman he said in court filings that he observed Armenta standing too close to the scene of the arrest.

Sgt. Shanks also said in court documents that he saw Armenta and said he was interfering with the woman’s arrest. He ordered Froese to arrest him.

Armenta testified he was simply standing back, following the advice of Gardenhire, who was yelling at his friends to remain calm. Then he noticed Froese approaching.

“And I’m not sure if he’s coming towards me or not, so I’m putting my hands up and I’m backing up,” he said.

Gardenhire said the officers moved Armenta backward and forcefully took him to the ground.

“Then they jumped on him and pounce on him … And then they manhandled him and beat him just like they beat Matt,” he said. “Pushing his face into the concrete. Wrenching his arm behind his back, and just manhandling him.”

Soon Officer McClelland came to help and, alongside Froese and Shanks, the three forced Armenta into handcuffs.

The encounter broke and sprained Armenta’s left arm.

Alongside the others arrested at the scene, Armenta was placed in a squad car and booked into the Douglas County Jail. His criminal trial was held in February 2015, and Armenta was found guilty of one of three counts of interfering with law enforcement.

Armenta’s civil lawsuit, which was filed before his criminal case went to court, argues that police had no reason to arrest him in the first place.

“Froese, McClelland, Shanks and other police officers forced their way into the courtyard, despite the fact that no crime was being committed,” the lawsuit’s complaint says.

And once he was under arrest, the officers used excessive force while their supervisor, Shanks, “failed to take preventative measures against the wrongful conduct,” the complaint says.

A jury trial for the lawsuit is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Sept. 12.