City to Pay in Complaint Case : Lawsuit: U.S. Supreme Court lets $85,000 award stand for a man who accused officers of beating him in 1986.

A U.S. Supreme Court decision to let stand an $85,000 judgment against the El Monte Police Department on behalf of a Baldwin Park man will not change police procedures in investigating complaints against the department, city officials said.

City Atty. David F. Gondek said El Monte was criticized last year by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for, among other practices, allowing criminal charges in a case to go forward in court before investigating related citizen complaints against the Police Department.

The criticism arose from a federal lawsuit filed against the city by Otha Thomas Rhodes, 51, who was arrested June 6, 1986. The appeals court concluded that the city’s policy of delaying investigations could encourage abusive officers to file false criminal charges to discourage complaints against them.

In its ruling, the appeals court said the Rhodes case demonstrated “a conscious decision on the part of the city to avert its eyes to the misconduct of its police officers.”

Rhodes’ attorney, Thomas Beck, said his client, a working-class man with three children, was delighted to finally be receiving the money after nearly seven years of delay. Rhodes’ wife has suffered severe medical problems and the family had to file for bankruptcy, Beck said.

“I’m just glad it’s over with,” said Rhodes, a mattress factory employee for the past 19 years. “They were so sure that the city wasn’t guilty; that’s why they pushed it so far.”

Police said Rhodes interfered with officers called to an El Monte apartment complex to break up a fight between two women. Rhodes was handcuffed and pushed face-first against a wall when he twice tried to bolt, officers said.

In his lawsuit, Rhodes, who was visiting a friend at the complex, said he was given permission by police to leave but was jumped by a second group of officers who thought he was fleeing. Rhodes accused two officers of knocking him to the ground, beating him with their batons, bruising his chest and giving him a swollen lip.

Although a federal jury in 1989 exonerated the officers, it found the city liable for his injuries and awarded Rhodes $85,000.

Both Beck and city officials said they were astonished by the jury’s mixed decision. City officials said the verdict made no sense, while Beck attributed the outcome to confusion over which of the many officers called to the scene had beaten Rhodes.

After the appeals court upheld the decision, the city appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which last Tuesday declined to hear the matter.

“It’s unfortunate, because I think we would have won,” El Monte Police Chief Wayne Clayton said.

The city’s policy of waiting until criminal charges have been settled before beginning complaint investigations is actually a protection for those facing court hearings, Clayton said. The delay prevents police from obtaining information that could be used against the accused in the criminal prosecution, he said.