October 2, 1999
With its 9/29/99 story by Melissa Browning describing the official videotape of the police killing of drunk-driving suspect Thomas Genge on March 12, 1999, the News-Times has supported the Lincoln City oficials in their attempt to deny police culpability in the death of the unarmed suspect.
The most disappointing error in the Browning story is the absence of any mention of the Oregon State Police investigation of the killing. On the basis of a thorough review of the tape and extensive interviews with the police officers and medical personnel, OSP investigators determined that Genge was the victim of intentional excessive force by LCPD Officer Craig Grabenhorst. The OSP findings directly contradict the position taken by the LCPD and Chief Doris Conley.
Studying the copy of the videotape obtained by The Don Quixote Society Website, one sees the two officers attempting to handcuff the suspect, struggling very briefly (15-20 seconds) with Genge who does not offer any combative response; his hands remain in his pockets, arms stiffened. (In the past such behavior has been called "passive resistance.") Backup Officer Harris and Genge fall to the ground and, after just a second, Grabenhorst piles on, lunging forward and down, knees first. It is clear Grabenhorst could have remained on his feet if he had chosen - and it is likely he would have done so had there not been the convenient soft landing spot of Genge's body available. Grabenhorst's blow is delivered almost casually, as if he had done the manuever before. The News-Times story includes no description of the lethal blow which struck the lower back and side of the prone Genge.
In his OSP statment and in his own official report, Grabenhorst states that Genge was in "good control" in the grip of Officer Harris as they fell to the ground. The OSP report by investigating officer Frank Lambert states, "The technique (the knee drop) appears deliberate. The officer maintains his balance prior to, during and after the movement. His apparent stability is inconsistent with a loss of balance or fall." Lambert goes on to describe how Grabenhorst continues to apply force with his knees to Genges' lower back while applying handcuffs.
Grabenhorst did not "premeditate" using excessive force on Genge; he just did it - in a split-second of bad judgement. This action was likely similar to past instances which did not result in serious injuries - when the officer felt it was appropriate to strike a suspect to obtain a fuller level of cooperation. However, there were plainly less violent ways to handle the matter of putting the handcuffs on Genge; for one, they could have continued to struggle to pull his hands out of his pockets - at least for a while longer.
If the policy of the Lincoln City police Dept. is to use the least amount of force required to secure the suspect, then Grabenhorst violated that rule. However, Police Chief Doris Conley's statement is that the department's investigation of the video and other evidence has found that Officer Grabenhorst acted according to department policy. This suggests that LCPD officers are permitted to use painful, dangerous, and even potentially lethal techniques to "soften up" suspects whose cooperation is unsatisfactory - even when these techniques involve more than the minimum necessary force.
The continuing denial by Chief Conley and city officials of any error, misjudgement, or misconduct on the part of Officer Grabenhorst may play a role in the wrongful death lawsuit which Genge's widow has filed a against the City of Lincoln City and the LCPD. It is common for juries to increase punitive damages against public and private defendants where there is reason to believe the policies which led to the injuries remain unchanged. Moreover, the Chief's failure to address the obvious discrepancy between the OSP investigation report and the results of the LCPD review raises the question of whether such an internal departmental review is adequate to insure accountability for officers' conduct.
It is important for local media and citizens to take responsibility for monitoring the behavior of law enforcement officers. In many communities independent committees have been established which investigate complaints of excessive force by police. At times these citizen groups have been given the power of suponea. The Genge case appears to be a strong indication that such civilian oversight is needed in Lincoln City.
Citizen monitoring of police also depends on adequate media coverage. The News-Times story omits reporting that as Genge lay writhing on the ground he told the officers at least seven times that he was dying - - and that it was 20 minutes after the take-down injury that an ambulance was finally called for. An additional 10 minutes or more elapsed before the ambulance arrived. The officers, particularly Grabenhorst, expressed disbelief that Genge was injured and displayed that attitude to the medical personnel who arrived in the ambulance. Furthermore, the paper's description of Genge's fatal injuries hardly does justice to the autopsy report, which describes three broken ribs and a six-inch laceration of the spleen which almost cut the 10-inch organ in half. The force of the blow "pulpified" the spleen and resulted in over one-half of a gallon of blood in the abdominal cavity.
The Don Quixote Society Website has been informed that additional media coverage of the Genge killing has appeared in the Lincoln City News-Guard. If that coverage is available online it will be linked here soon. Stay tuned.