T.D.F. v. State

264 So. 3d 108
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Alabama
DecidedMarch 16, 2018
DocketCR–16–1202
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 264 So. 3d 108 (T.D.F. v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
T.D.F. v. State, 264 So. 3d 108 (Ala. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinion

WELCH, Judge.

T.D.F., a juvenile, was adjudicated delinquent based on the juvenile court's finding that he committed the offenses of second-degree assault, JU-13-378.16, a violation § 13A-6-21(a)(4), Ala. Code 1975, and resisting arrest, JU-13-378.17, a violation of § 13A-10-41, Ala. Code 1975.1 The juvenile court placed T.D.F. on probation and ordered T.D.F. to complete the Pathway Residential Treatment Program. Probation was to be reviewed in six months. This appeal followed.

Facts

Officer Christopher Thompson with the Dothan Police Department testified that on April 7, 2017, at approximately 4:50 p.m., he and Officer Lindsay Holloway, who were patrolling in separate vehicles, responded to an emergency 911 call made by S.F. reporting her son, T.D.F., as being a disorderly juvenile. Officer Holloway arrived at S.F.'s home, on Darlington Circle, before Officer Thompson. After speaking with S.F., Officer Holloway contacted Officer Thompson and told him that T.D.F. had left S.F.'s home on foot and was walking toward 3rd Avenue carrying two red suitcases.

Officer Thompson testified that he and Officer Holloway originally wanted only to find T.D.F. and talk to him to find out what was going on and to find out if he was running away from home. The officers knew that T.D.F. had a juvenile probation officer; they intended to contact T.D.F.'s probation officer to see what needed to be done, depending on the situation. Officer Holloway located T.D.F. on Donna Drive. When Officer Thompson arrived at that location, he observed Officer Holloway outside her vehicle and T.D.F. walking away from her while she was ordering him to talk to her. Officer Thompson drove his vehicle past T.D.F. and Officer Holloway to the next intersection to block T.D.F. from walking away. When Officer Thompson got out of his vehicle, "[T.D.F.] began yelling 'f*ck y'all'.... He was out in the middle of the street doing that." (R. 27.) Officer Thompson affirmed that "[y]elling 'f*ck y'all' to the police is not illegal." (R. 28.) Officer Thompson stated that he

"informed [T.D.F.] to 'come here' so [he] could talk to him. [T.D.F.] refused. [T.D.F.] started using very colorful language. Again, I told him to come here again. I grabbed the tail of his shirt. At that point [T.D.F.] became very aggressive, started flailing his arms, and at some point Officer Holloway was struck."

(R. 14.) Officer Thompson stated that he was authorized to lay hands on T.D.F. because T.D.F. was given a lawful order to stop and did not comply.

"Q. [Defense Counsel:] ... Is that something that you're allowed to do as a police officer, to put hands on somebody?
"A. [Officer Thompson:] Yes, ma'am. I gave him a lawful order to stop so that we can investigate a potential crime.
"Q. And the potential crime being?
*112"A. He was a runaway juvenile, off of his medication, acting disorderly, possibly involved in domestic violence."

(R. 24.)

Officer Thompson explained that, "once [he] grabbed [T.D.F.'s] shirt, ... that's when the physical response from [T.D.F.] happened." (R. 25.) "Immediately when [T.D.F.] began flailing his arms and continuing to yell profanities, [Officer Thompson] informed him that he was going to be placed under arrest." (R. 26.) Officer Thompson testified that there was no time to tell T.D.F. what he was under arrest for because everything happened quickly. However, Officer Thompson also testified that he told T.D.F. that he was under arrest for disorderly conduct. However, Officer Thompson stated that T.D.F. was told to stop resisting so the officers could investigate whether he was a runaway juvenile who was off his medication and also, possibly involved in domestic violence. "[T.D.F.] struck Officer Holloway and continued to throw punches at both of [the officers]." (R. 15.) T.D.F. punched Officer Holloway in her face with his fist. T.D.F. was "flailing violently." (R. 16.) Officer Thompson was able to get one handcuff on T.D.F.'s right wrist before all three individuals fell to the ground in the middle of street. T.D.F. was cursing the entire time. Officer Thompson guessed that it took possibly as long as two minutes to gain control over T.D.F. Officer Holloway was injured during the melee. Ultimately, T.D.F. was taken to the Dothan Police Department to talk with an investigator, but he refused.

Officer Holloway with the Dothan Police Department stated that on April 7, 2017, she was dispatched to Darlington Circle as Officer Thompson's backup officer. She arrived before Officer Thompson and she spoke with S.F.

"My understanding was that [T.D.F.] came home from school, I believe, and [S.F.] said that he was not acting right. [T.D.F.] had been throwing things around the house and she said he was going to leave. He was going to pack his bags and leave. She said he was not on his medicine2 .... I asked her if she wanted me to bring him back to the house if I made contact with him, and she said, 'No,' she did not want him there."

(R. 36.) Officer Holloway assumed that, because S.F. did not want T.D.F. returned home, she wanted the officers to contact T.D.F.'s probation officer. Officer Holloway clarified that S.F. "never" said anything about domestic violence or indicated that she wanted T.D.F. arrested. (R. 37.) Officer Holloway said that, because she thought [T.D.F.] was off of his medication, there needed to be a welfare check on him to make sure he was okay and that that was what she intended to do. Officer Holloway testified that S.F. did not tell her that S.F. had called the police a second time to inform the dispatcher that the officers were no longer needed because the situation had resolved itself and that T.D.F. was going to stay with his aunt.

Officer Holloway left S.F.'s house and soon saw T.D.F. walking with his suitcases in the street on Donna Drive. Officer Holloway stated that she parked her vehicle "catty-corner" to T.D.F.'s path and got out of her vehicle. (R. 30.) She saw Officer Thompson arriving. When she got out of her vehicle, she "attempted to contact [T.D.F.]," but he started "cussing at [her], yelling 'F you.' " (R. 30.) Meanwhile, Officer Thompson parked his vehicle "about four car lengths" in front of T.D.F., who was still walking down the street away from Officer Holloway toward Officer Thompson. (R. 30.) T.D.F. stopped about *11310 feet in front of Officer Thompson's vehicle. T.D.F., "threw the suitcases down and tried to take off when [the officers] were trying to get him to come talk to [them]." (R. 31.) "Officer Thompson pulled the back of [T.D.F.'s] shirttail to try to get him to stop, and that's when the fight started." (R. 31.)

"Officer Thompson and [T.D.F.] started fighting. [Officer Thompson] tried to get his arm behind [T.D.F.] and place [T.D.F.] under arrest, and so I went to attempt to grab the other arm-I believe it was [T.D.F.'s] left arm. So there was one of us on each side and we just-we could not get [T.D.F.] to the ground. Every time we would tell him to stop resisting, he would fight a little harder."

(R. 31.) Officer Holloway believed that Officer Thompson advised T.D.F. that he was under arrest. Officer Holloway testified that T.D.F. was being arrested for disorderly conduct because he had failed to obey a lawful order from Officer Thompson.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
264 So. 3d 108, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tdf-v-state-alacrimapp-2018.