OKLAHOMA CITY -
An Oklahoma City police officer
has been charged with misdemeanor assault and battery following a traffic stop.
According to Oklahoma City
police, Sgt. Matthew Downing stopped a driver who was not paying attention when
the light turned green at N.W. 36th Street and May Ave. at about 10:35 a.m. on
Sunday, January 26.
As Sgt. Downing was speaking
with the driver, police said another vehicle drove by, and that driver leaned
out the window and yelled a comment regarding the traffic stop.
News 9 reporter Adrianna
Iwasinski obtained a police report Monday. According to the report, that
officer was yelling at a driver at the intersection at N.W. 36th and May Ave.
when another driver yelled at him.
According to police, Sgt.
Downing then left the scene of the original traffic stop to talk to the driver
who yelled the comment. He caught up to that car, which was stopped at a
convenience store in the area.
Sgt. Downing spoke with that
driver inside the store. He tried to arrest him and the driver resisted, which
resulted in a minor use of force, police said.
According to police, a police
supervisor responded to the scene to investigate the use of force. The
supervisor did not agree with the officer's actions. He released the driver and
notified command of the incident.
"A supervisor was
contacted, came to the scene, and reviewed the officer's actions," said
Captain Dexter Nelson with the Oklahoma City Police Department. "That
supervisor found that the officer's actions were unwarranted. and ordered the
immediate release of the individual."
Oklahoma City Police Chief Bill
Citty directed the Office of Professional Standards to conduct a criminal
investigation into the incident. The investigation concluded with a criminal
charge presented to Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater.
The District Attorney has
formally charged him with misdemeanor assault and battery for confronting the
man inside the convenience store, all for yelling the phrase, "Road rage
sucks!"
Sgt. Downing remains on
administrative leave. He has not been arrested since he's out of town.
Downing, a 15-year veteran of
the force, is part of the Uniform Support assigned to the Traffic Unit.
Former Carroll Valley officer
charged with corruption of a minor
Daniel Lanious, 50, allegedly
sent sexually explicit text messages to a 13-year-old girl
By Mark Walters
A former Carroll Valley Police
officer has been has been accused of sending "flirtatious and sexual"
text messages to a 13-year-old girl, state police state in charging documents.
Daniel Lanious, 50, of South
Middleton Township, Cumberland County, was charged with corruption of a minor,
according to a police criminal complaint filed at District Justice Susan Day's
office in Mount Holly Springs.
The teenager's mother told
police that Lanious met her daughter while volunteering at the South Middleton
Township Fire Company No. 35 in July 2013, according to the affidavit of
probable cause.
The girl received a text
message from Lanious out of nowhere, the affidavit states. The messages quickly
became "very flirtatious and sexual," the affidavit continues.
The girl said she believed
Lanious obtained her cellphone number from her Facebook page, the affidavit
states.
The girl told police Lanious
often mentioned wanting to have sex with her, according to the affidavit. She
said she played along to an extent, but was not as graphic as he was, the
affidavit continues.
The messages reportedly stopped
on Aug. 13, when the girl's mother caught the last text, which read " I
wish you were home I wish you were on birth control I have a condom,"
according to the affidavit.
The mother replied to the
message and told Lanious she hoped he was not over 18 because her daughter is
only 13, according to the affidavit.
A day or two later the mother
was visited by Lanious' son, who asked the mother if she would be contacting
police, the affidavit states.
During an interview with state
police Trooper Matthew Johnston from the Carlisle barracks, Lanious admitted to
sending sexual text messages to the 13-year-old girl, the affidavit states.
Lanious apologized repeatedly
for his actions and admitted what he did was "very stupid," according
to the affidavit.
A preliminary hearing is
scheduled for Lanious on April 2 in front of Day. He is being represented by
Gettysburg attorney Steve Rice. Rice declined to comment on the case until he
has spoken further with his client.
"As a well respected law
enforcement officer, it would be nice if people could give him the benefit of
the doubt," Rice said.