Don Lehman
QUEENSBURY -- A state Supreme
Court justice has ruled against Warren County in a woman’s lawsuit that accuses
county sheriff’s officers of brutality and false arrest, setting the stage for
a trial later this year.
Supreme Court Justice David
Krogmann denied a request by the county to dismiss the lawsuit filed by Martha
Philion in connection with her arrest on a disorderly conduct charge in October
2009.
Philion, 73, has alleged her
right shoulder was “seriously and permanently” injured when sheriff’s officers
took her into custody after she cursed them in front of her home.
Sheriff’s officers had gone to
Philion’s home on Coolidge Avenue after receiving a call from someone who was
concerned about the welfare of her adult son, Thomas “Neil” Beatty.
Officers Scott Rawson and
Kurtis Glenn went to the home, but Beatty would not come out.
Beatty was facing felony child
sexual abuse and child pornography charges at the time, and had been told by
his lawyer not to have contact with police unless they had a warrant, Philion
told police.
He came to the door, but when
the officers insisted they be allowed to speak to him, Philion became irate and
cursed at them, according to court records.
That resulted in her being
charged with disorderly conduct, a noncriminal violation. She could have been
charged with the weightier misdemeanor of obstructing governmental
administration, but police filed the lesser charge instead, county officials
claimed in court papers.
The disorderly conduct charge
was dismissed 12 days later, and Philion filed a lawsuit seeking unspecified
monetary damages in 2011.
The lawsuit alleges Philion was
injured when she was “taken down” on her porch. Warren County Sheriff Bud York
said he had no comment on the matter because of the pending litigation.
The lawyer appointed by the
county’s insurance carrier, Gregg Johnson, had asked Krogmann to throw out the
lawsuit. But the judge concluded that Philion had not committed disorderly
conduct because there were no members of the public present to witness her
alleged actions.
Krogmann also concluded she was
“arrested without probable cause,” so the use of force to arrest her was not
justified. The ruling sets up a trial in the coming months, barring an appeal
or settlement.
Philion’s lawyer, Daniel Stewart,
said he had no comment on the case Tuesday.
The case was the subject of an
executive session at a recent county Board of Supervisors meeting, with no
action taken afterward. County Attorney Martin Auffredou said the lawsuit was
still pending as of Tuesday.
“There have been some
settlement discussions,” Auffredou said.
Beatty pleaded guilty to a
felony count of possession of a sexual performance by a child and was sentenced
in 2010 to 1 to 3 years in state prison. He was paroled in February 2012.