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Captain supports cop's use of force
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CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE - Wildwood police Capt. Kevin McLaughlin testified in court Wednesday that a video of a Sept. 21, 2002, arrest by Officer David Romeo shows Romeo acting properly as he attempts to subdue a suspect.
"Based on what I saw … I believe he made a correct arrest there," McLaughlin said.
Romeo, suspended without pay from the Police Department since Aug. 24, 2007, is charged with official misconduct, a second-degree crime, and two counts of simple assault for allegedly kicking two handcuffed car-burglary suspects July 24, 2007.
During Romeo's trial on those charges, Assistant Prosecutor Matthew D. Weintraub wants a jury to hear about other allegations of excessive force, including what was caught on video Sept. 21, 2002.
But it will be up to Superior Court Judge Raymond Batten to determine, after an ongoing pretrial hearing, if that incident or any of the other allegations are admitted as evidence.
McLaughlin investigated the 2002 case, which involved charges that Romeo used excessive force when he tried to arrest John Hruska during the city's annual car show weekend.
McLaughlin told the judge that the crowds during the event are particularly unruly.
"It's probably the worst weekend of the year for us," McLaughlin said.
The video, filmed by Bridgeton resident Joshua Scythes, shows Romeo and the crowd that night and then shows Romeo as he grabs Hruska by the throat and pushes him against a police car, eventually pulling him down to the ground.
A portion of the incident, however, was not filmed.
McLaughlin watched as the video was shown in the courtroom, and said Hruska was not cooperating with Romeo and that Romeo acted appropriately.
"All I saw was a Wildwood police officer trying to control a subject," McLaughlin said during questioning by defense attorney John Tumelty.
Weintraub said the missing piece of the video does not show what Romeo did or said before Romeo is seen grabbing Hruska.
"I don't know what happened," McLaughlin agreed.
Scythes said he did not know Hruska prior to that night. He said he was using someone else's 8 mm camera to film the car show and then turned the camera toward Romeo as he arrived on the scene.
As for the missing portion, which he said was about 5 to 10 seconds of action, he said, "Somebody told me, 'Turn the camera off.'"
Scythes, who was convicted of receiving stolen property in 2004, said the video accurately showed what happened.
He admitted under cross-examination, however, that he is not a fan of law enforcement. "Sometimes I don't" like police, he said.
Tumelty challenged the authenticity of the videotape, noting it has been copied many times, but Batten ruled the tape was admissible during the pretrial hearings.
The day's other witness was retired Capt. Marie Hayes of the Cape May County Prosecutor's Office.
Hayes investigated a January 2002 incident in which a suspect, Jason Russell, said he was sitting in a police car handcuffed when he was punched in the face by Romeo.
Hayes said she saw no injuries to his face when she interviewed Russell, but she also said she did not ask about any injuries to the inside of Russell's mouth. Russell told officers at the jail he was suffering from a painful dental condition.
Batten will eventually rule on whether the incident involving Hruska and four other cases of alleged misconduct will be admitted as evidence during Romeo's trial.
However, before that ruling is made, Batten will hear from Chief of County Detectives James Rybicki.
Rybicki, expected to testify this week, signed off on letters issued in those cases in which the Prosecutor's Office found insufficient evidence to charge Romeo with a crime.
E-mail Trudi Gilfillian:
Posted in Cape_may on Thursday, July 9, 2009 4:00 am Updated: 5:41 am.
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