Prosecutor Says Officer Assaulted 2 Men and Peers Acted in Cover-Up

Officer Robert Flinn abused his authority as an Oxnard policeman when he kicked an unarmed man in the face and beat another in the head with a flashlight, a prosecutor charged Thursday.

And the assaults were covered up by Flinn’s fellow officers in accordance with an unspoken policy of silence within the Oxnard Police Department, Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael K. Frawley said.

“This case is about a 185-pound bully with a badge,” said Frawley, turning on his heel and pointing at Flinn, dressed in a dark suit and sitting at the defense table.

“This is also a case about a code of silence among some police officers,” Frawley said.

Frawley told the jury that witnesses, specifically three Oxnard police officers, would take the stand and deny ever having seen Flinn beat Juan Lopez and Victor Aguiar on Dec. 27, 1995, and Jan. 27, 1996.

Only former Police Officer David Hawtin would testify to having seen Flinn strike Lopez in the head with his flashlight--an allegation that caused Hawtin to be branded a traitor within the ranks.

“You will see that Officer Hawtin has broken the code of silence,” Frawley said. “You will also see what venom flows when an officer breaks the code of silence.”

During the prosecutor’s opening statement--which lasted more than an hour as he previewed the evidence and anticipated testimony in the case--Flinn sat between his attorney and a defense investigator, frequently shaking his head in disagreement as Frawley spoke.

He is on leave from the department and has pleaded not guilty to four charges of assault under color of authority. If convicted, he faces anything from a fine to three years in prison.

According to prosecutors, Flinn assaulted Aguiar and Lopez during separate police calls more than a year ago.

In December 1995, he allegedly kicked Aguiar in the face, causing his nose to bleed, after authorities chased the man and a friend into the backyard of an Oxnard home. Police were pursuing the pair, who were unarmed, because Aguiar’s friend reportedly had violated probation.

While Aguiar was lying face-down on the ground after being caught by Flinn and three other officers, Flinn kicked him in the face “just as naturally as he breathes,” Frawley told the jury.

Although Aguiar complained, no report of the incident was completed and Flinn’s fellow officers have denied the incident took place, Frawley said.

In January 1996, Frawley said, Flinn assaulted Lopez, who had been running from police with stolen battery chargers. Although Lopez finally stopped, Flinn clubbed him on the head with a flashlight while he was standing, then hit him again after he fell to the ground, Frawley said.

“He will tell you that he still gets headaches every day from that beating,” Frawley said.

It was Hawtin who observed the alleged flashlight beating and came forward, therefore breaking the “code of silence,” Frawley said. Hawtin is expected to be one of the first witnesses to testify.

Flinn’s defense attorney plans to give his opening statement this morning.