Overly agressive cop?

Wouldn't be the first time.


ORLANDO, Fla. -- A 26-year-old Orlando police officer threw an 84-year-old man to the ground so hard during a confrontation over the weekend that it broke his neck.

Daniel Daley is recovering at Florida Hospital where he underwent surgery for a broken neck Monday after he was arrested by Officer Travis Lamont late Saturday night. Daley's son, Greg, told WFTV Monday he made it through surgery and is in intensive care.

Police said the war veteran committed a crime when he grabbed Officer Travis Lamont and officials said they will press charges against him.

Not everyone believes the officer did the right thing. Eyewitnesses said Daniel Daley might have stumbled into the officer, but they never saw him grab the officer around the neck, pull back his fist, or threaten to knock down the officer.

Daley was an Army intelligence officer during World War II and also served during Vietnam. Eyewitness Sean Hill said Daley did not draw back to punch the officer. He showed WFTV what happened before the officer threw him to the ground.

"He said, 'I'm not done talking to this cop.' Whether it was alcohol, he stumbled. He's 84 years old; he needs a walker," Hill said.

Hill said he will never forget the sound of Daley's head hitting the pavement.

"Like a watermelon. Pop!" he described.

Orlando police said Daniel Daley was intoxicated when he grabbed the officer's neck and then threatened to punch him. WFTV spoke with Orlando Police Department Sgt. Barbara Jones Monday (full interview) , who said Daley had a .187 alcohol level, twice the legal limit for driving.

"He grabbed the officer, pulled back his arm and said, 'I'm not going anywhere until I knock out this cop,' something to that effect," Jones said.

Orlando police are defending Officer Lamont even before their review to determine whether his use of force was justified.

"Everybody is focusing on the age. I am focusing on the action of the person. People, 84, can kill officers, too, can cold-**** my officer in the face, knock him out and now you've got an officer laying down on the ground with a gun, and everything is completely out of control," Jones said.

Officer Lamont had been called to the parking lot of The Caboose bar on North Orange Avenue south of Princeton Street (see map) around 11:00pm Saturday, after reports that Daley was arguing with a tow truck driver. Daley had gotten upset that his car was being towed. He allegedly unknowingly parked in a local market's parking space.

Local bar owner Tim Scott said he had words with the officer.

"I told him, 'Dude, you're tougher than that.' He said, 'I didn't know what he was going to do,'" Scott explained.

Greg Daley said he isn't giving up.

"The severity of his injuries just seem as though an overwhelming amount of power to take him down like that," he said (full interview) .

Greg Daley plans to take the Orlando Police Department to court and is considering pushing for a criminal investigation into Officer Lamont's actions.

Attorney Mark NeJame says he's representing Daley's son and if the police did something wrong he's going after them.

Police will review Daley's arrest to determine whether the officer used excessive force. If he's cleared, the only way there would be an internal affairs investigation is if Daley or his family files a complaint and that would also be reviewed by the Citizens Review Board.

WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer said the state attorney could investigate it criminally.

"The State Attorney's Office has the authority to take it to the grand jury and let the grand jury decide whether it was a lawful use of force," Sheaffer said.

Officer Lamont has been with the department since 2008. WFTV found three disciplinary notes on his record. There were two for minor traffic crashes involving his patrol car. The third was after Lamont arrested someone for a misdemeanor, but didn't see the crime himself so the person had to be let go.

Police sent the incident report (read it) involving Daley's arrest to prosecutors. They want Daley to be charged with assault and battery on a law enforcement officer and disorderly conduct.

Elderly Man's Neck Broken During Confrontation With Cop - News Story - WFTV Orlando

beatdown in the O-town haha...

I would bet theres a good possibility that the age plus alcohol level left the man less than stable on his feet. It probably wouldnt take much and an accident may have caused his injury. The cop may have reacted to the guy jumping him and just tried getting him off of him and the result caused the guy to fall even without "unnecessary force". Hopefully the camera in the car was in a position to capture it.

I mean it's not being disputed that the officer threw him to the ground, it's the force he used in doing that. Assuming I believe the old man did anything to the cop to warrant him being taken down.

Put yourself in the position of a cop if someone comes from behind on your and grabs you around the shoulders/neck. You have a gun, but are in a very vulnerable position of having it taken from you, or they may have one or a knife on themselves as well. You naturally will defend yourself and try to seperate yourself from them.

He came from behind? Where does it say that? I looked over it several times and just said "grabbed the officers neck" and threatened to punch him in the face, doesn't sound from behind to me. I mean I could be reading it wrong, but pretty sure it wasn't from behind.

Doesn't matter the age or what. My grandfather is 80, and he's more than capable of choking a cop and taking his gun.

so, if alcohol was present and he approached the officer in any manner.... he had the right to defend himself... Age plays a part in how easy it is for the elder to receive injury.

The words 'elderly' and 'senior' tend to conjure images of weakness. This is just word spinning.

The status of being a senior citizen doesn't give them a free pass to assault anyone.
We cant pity them if they're breaking the law just because they're considered elderly.

And being elderly doesn't mean they're weak. I'm sure most of us know some tough older folks that we wouldn't want to mess with. My own grandmother, up until she was 86 or so and broke her hip, was a very strong woman who tilled and hoed her own gardens and did a good deal of the manual labor around her home.

FWIW Younger folks are also injured in altercations with police.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by R13

He came from behind? Where does it say that? I looked over it several times and just said "grabbed the officers neck" and threatened to punch him in the face, doesn't sound from behind to me. I mean I could be reading it wrong, but pretty sure it wasn't from behind.

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You read too much into my post. I didn't say it was this particular situation, but a general situation of being in a cops shoes. We really don't know the angle the attacker came one way or the other, but I assume its at least from the side since he grabbed the cops arm.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by imported_elp6n

The words 'elderly' and 'senior' tend to conjure images of weakness. This is just word spinning.

The status of being a senior citizen doesn't give them a free pass to assault anyone.
We cant pity them if they're breaking the law just because they're considered elderly.

And being elderly doesn't mean they're weak. I'm sure most of us know some tough older folks that we wouldn't want to mess with. My own grandmother, up until she was 86 or so and broke her hip, was a very strong woman who tilled and hoed her own gardens and did a good deal of the manual labor around her home.

FWIW Younger folks are also injured in altercations with police.

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I agree with you on this, being elderly does not mean that he was a weak, frail man. With alcohol being involved, anything can and will happen. It just means the man is older, not weak.