Jury at stalemate in officer’s trial

Former Madison Police officer Eric Parker takes the stand in his federal trial Wednesday. The jury began deliberations late Wednesday afternoon but because a jury was dismissed Thursday morning because of travel plans, the judge instructed the jury to begin deliberations anew with the addition of the alternate juror.

Parker has denied using a leg sweep to take Patel down. Patel has denied that and said through an interpreter that he didn’t understand the officers’ orders because he doesn’t speak English.

“Unfortunately, he was hurt in the situation”, Parker said of Patel. Parker has said he took 58-year-old Sureshbhai Patel to the ground after the man resisted officers during a suspicious-person investigation. Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley called Patel’s treatment a case of “excessive force” in an apologetic letter to the Indian government.

An abbreviated day of testimony in the fourth day of the Eric Parker trial in federal court yielded no dramatic revelations in the Indian grandfather takedown case.

Strategic Self-Defense and Grappling Tactics training program creator Johnny Smith also said last week that Patel beginning to turn toward Parker may have indicated some level of resistance.

As for the issue of whether Patel understood English and could comprehend the questions Parker and Slaughter asked, Parker said, “People constantly try to deceive us”. Any use of force should be reasonable and necessary, Poniatowski said, but she stopped short of saying whether Parker’s use of force was unreasonable.

Dispatcher Angela Sharp was recorded asking Parker if he needed her to “stack” details that he could include in paperwork about the probable cause Parker used to justify detaining Patel. Patel was partially paralyzed after the fall. Parker’s point was that he was only doing his job. Much of the testimony has surrounded how Parker swept Patel’s legs in an unusual technique. That included Patel repeatedly walking away from the officers when they approached to investigate possible trespassing as well as putting his hands in his pocket.