PEORIA -- Here is what Doris Muller writes about her arrest then the county's decision not to prosecute. Judge for yourself whether the criminal justice system in Peoria is working:
Click on "defending animals" under 'categories' (to the right) then scroll down to the following dates for more on Doris' ordeal: Aug. 28, Oct. 4, both 2007 and Jan. 31, 2008, and Sept. 1, 2007 under the category 'law, legal issues.'
Doris writes:This is the final chapter of "My trip to see the big cats in Peoria," August 31, 2007.
My gratitude to all who supported me during this unpleasant incident.
I do acknowledge, in the overall scheme of world problems, what happened to me is admittedly trivial. Nonetheless, it is not to be trivialized because it involved unlawful police behavior. I also acknowledge that justice may or may not have been served: It was not served because I am not willing to pay the monetary price for justice. Nonetheless, justice may have been served by my being diligent in having whatever voice I could.
I was in contact with a lawyer who I asked to discover two types of information: "This is what I am seeking help with: In the letter from the internal review it states 'a thorough and impartial examination of all of the available information has been completed.' I would like to know what was included in 'all of the available information.' I would also like to know the complaint record of Officer A. Dotson."
Pasted below is the response from the attorney. I have omitted his name.
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Dear Doris: During the past ten days I (1), reviewed your case file at the Peoria County Court House, (2) discussed the case with city prosecutor Sonny Williams, (3) discussed the case with Grand Prairie Mall manager D. Shipman, and (4) looked into the Peoria Police Department's internal procedures regarding complaints against police officers.
Your legal case, involving an alleged Peoria City Ordinance violation, was initially set for hearing on October 18, 2007. The city requested a bench trial and the case was continued to January 31, 2008. On January 31, 2008, your case was dismissed without prejudice by Judge Gorman. This order was entered pursuant to a motion by city attorney Sonny Williams. I was advised by Attorney Williams that she has prosecutional discretion in these types of cases and that the nature of the charges did not justify bringing complaining witnesses in from Texas.
A dismissal without prejudice means that the city can reopen the case within five years from date of incident, however attorney Williams advised me that this is rarely done and she has no intention of reopening your case.
D. Shipman of Grand Prairie Mall stated that she was familiar with the incident of 8-31-07 which she felt was mainly a dispute between you, the cat handlers, and a lady police officer. The mall has no dispute with you at this time and certainly does not prohibit or ban your use of the mall at any time.
I tried several times to contact Sgt. Hlavacek , but to date have been unsuccessful. Other reliable sources advise me that the current Police Chief is very protective of his officers and that complaints against his officers are rarely sustained. However, complaints against officers are made part of their record which should mitigate against chronic bad conduct. Officer Dotson has been an officer for two years, and according to my source, had a clean record until your complaint was filed. The officers' records are protected by privacy laws and are not subject to freedom of information requests. Such records would be obtainable by a subpoena in a civil or criminal action.
In theory, you could file a civil action against the police alleging damages as a result of police misconduct. In my legal opinion, the facts in this case do not support such an action-- not to mention the high legal costs and expenses to pursue such a lawsuit.
With regard to your city ordinance case, I suggest you take no action since calling attention to it may result in a reopening by the city attorney.
My advice is to put this unpleasant incident behind you and enjoy your life (including Grand Prairie Mall).
Sincerely, F. S.
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