MACHIAS, Maine — An Indian Township man has notified Machias town and police officials of his intent to sue the community and the police department over an incident last summer during which he says an officer used excessive force and seriously injured him.
The actions of Officer William Scull, who no longer works for the department, “constitute aggravated assault, false arrest, false imprisonment, excessive use of force and failure to follow policy and procedures resulting in physical injury,” reads the notice of claim submitted by attorney Jeff Davidson on behalf of his client, Joshua Smith, 37.
As a result of the assault, according to Davidson, Smith suffered a fractured orbital socket and experienced temporary blindness to his right eye. Smith’s nose was broken, and a piece of his collarbone, which was fractured, had to be removed surgically, according to Davidson.
The alleged incident began about 11 p.m. Aug. 6, 2015, when an employee of the Irving gas station on Main Street in Machias called police and asked them to remove Smith from the premises.
The police report written by Scull, the officer who handled the call, and Smith’s account of what happened differ dramatically.
Scull reported Smith was “clearly intoxicated” and repeatedly refused to follow directions.
“I asked him to follow me to my vehicle,” Scull said in the report. “As we went toward it, he kept bumping into me and trying to stay very close. I asked him repeatedly to move away from me.”
Scull said Smith moved toward him two more times, then the officer put him in handcuffs “for his safety and mine because he was not able to follow my directions and repeatedly attempted to move into me, and his behavior was becoming more and more irrational.”
Though Scull told Smith he was being detained, “Smith kept walking away from me, still in handcuffs,” according to the report.
“I quickly moved to Smith and attempted to stop him. … I grabbed him by the arms and attempted to use his momentum and body weight to turn him and stop him,” Scull said in the report. “Smith was already off balance when I grabbed him due to his intoxicated state. I was not anticipating how fast he would fall. I turned Smith toward me, he fell over my leg and to the ground. Smith’s face struck the ground, causing a cut/scrape over the right eye.”
Scull indicated in the report that after Smith refused medical attention several times, he was instructed to leave the premises.
Smith left but came back about 15 minutes later “to ask me for medical attention,” Scull said, adding he called an ambulance.
“As the ambulance was about to arrive, Smith became very loud, and I told him he was now under arrest for disorderly conduct,” Scull said in the report. “I placed him in handcuffs behind his back.”
But Davidson says the officer apparently wasn’t aware a surveillance camera at the gas station captured video of the interaction that tells a different tale. Davidson obtained a copy of the surveillance footage and shared some of the video with the Bangor Daily News.
“It is clear that Officer Scull is intentionally falsifying his police report in order to cover up his actions and attempt to place blame on Mr. Smith for his own unlawful behavior,” Davidson said in the notice of claim he sent to the town in January.
“The video recording clearly shows that Mr. Smith never moved toward Officer Scull in any way whatsoever, and he was fully compliant with Officer Scull’s direction,” Davidson said in the notice of claim.
After Smith starts to walk away from the officer, Davidson said the recording shows Scull placing his cellphone on the ground and approaching Smith from behind.
“Officer Scull then executed what appears to be an academy trained hip-toss on Mr. Smith. Officer Scull grabbed Mr. Smith by the neck and the left arm, swung his right leg in front of Mr. Smith and tossed Mr. Smith over his right hip, propelling him face first into the parking lot pavement,” while his hands were still handcuffed behind his back, Davidson stated in the notice of claim.
The attorney further stated that his client was knocked out and that, when he came to, the officer told him he was free to go. Smith left but returned a few minutes later to insist that an ambulance be called, Davidson said in the notice of claim.
Davidson said that, when Smith said he would not leave without medical attention, “Officer Scull arrested him for demanding medical treatment.”
The attorney stated in the notice of claim that Smith “continues to suffer from damage to his brain which has caused depression, anxiety, panic attacks, loss of sleep, paranoia cognitive difficulties, memory loss and anger in his interpersonal relationships. This has severely affected his relationship with his wife who has suffered a loss of consortium as a result of Mr. Smith’s injuries.”
Because of his injuries, Smith also can no longer work, Davidson said.
The disorderly conduct charge against Smith was dismissed for insufficient evidence Aug. 26, according to Washington County Court Clerk Pam McPherson.
Davidson said the excessive force case was sent to Washington County District Attorney Matthew Foster and the state attorney general’s office, but both declined to press charges against Scull.
Foster said Feb. 3 that after the attorney general’s office reviewed the case, “they advised me no criminal charges were supported.”
That doesn’t mean Foster believes the officer behaved appropriately.
“It’s troubling,” he said.
However, it is not the district attorney’s job to discipline people in their jobs, he said.
Scull, who had just been hired on May 1, 2015, no longer works for the Machias Police Department. In a letter dated Sept. 3, Machias Town Manager Christina Therrien notified Scull, “The town has decided to end your employment with the town during your probationary period.”
The separation was effective Sept. 3. Therrien declined to comment further on Scull’s termination or the notice of claim about the pending lawsuit, which she said the town received on Jan. 15.
Efforts to contact Scull have been unsuccessful.