by Garth Meyer
The 19-year-old skateboarder who accused Redondo Police of tripping him outside the new Pier skate park, and sending him flying into a fire hydrant, was sentenced to 30 hours community service and a $100 fine in a judicial diversion July 20.
Count One against him was a misdemeanor violation for willfully and unlawfully resisting, delaying or obstructing a police officer. Count Two was an infraction violation for riding a skateboard within a (prohibited area) – outside of the skate park fence at Redondo Beach Pier.
The arresting RBPD officer, Sgt. Spry, wrote in the April 21 police report that when he encountered the suspect, he “quickly ordered him to stop as he rapidly closed the distance between him and I. (The skateboarder) not only ignored my commands but put his foot down to propel his board again. I placed my foot and left leg in front of (the suspect). This caused his board to come to a stop and due to his speed and momentum, he continued forward and collided with a yellow fire hydrant which caused him to stop. At that time, he was lying face down on the ground, I stood over him and placed him in handcuffs without further incident.”
The skateboarder was among a crowd of others leaving the skate park after it closed, prompted by a group of about a dozen officers who arrived to clear it out.
“Technically, it was a plea deal,” he said of his sentencing. “I’m more than happy with the results – to get some redemption and to get my story out to raise awareness of what happened. Police incompetence, excessive force… It’s good to have a history as far as what’s going on. The public deserves to know how the police interact with their community.”
He had no previous record.
The sentence, as explained by Melanie Chavira, Redondo Beach city prosecutor, allows the opportunity for the suspect’s record to stay clean.
“As long as he does everything he is supposed to do, the arrest record is sealed,” Chavira said.
Circumstances
The skateboarder told the Easy Reader he heard no order from police to stop, and he believes it was dangerous for the officer to “stomp” on his board, ending with the skateboarder hitting the fire hydrant, bruising his back.
So was the encounter handled according to the common standards and practices of the RBPD?
“The standards for the Redondo Beach Police Department are to comply with federal, state and local laws, and the policies in place for the RBPD. So the answer to that is yes,” said Joe Hoffman, Redondo Beach Police Chief. “At that point the sergeant has given a lawful order to prevent the collision between (the suspect) and the officer. Very clearly, had (the suspect) complied, this could have been avoided, which was all on the bodycam. I think the sergeant’s actions were reasonable to prevent a collision after he had given a lawful order. This is the type of incident that is very easily avoided. A skateboarder operating down there in and of itself is a hazard. In many police situations, it is tense, uncertain and rapidly evolving, and this was no exception. The individual took his chances by not complying and it resulted in an unintended injury.”
What if the officer stayed aside, let the skateboarder pass and then chased him? Hoffman answered that an officer on foot does not have much of a chance to catch someone on a skateboard.
Sgt. Spry included in the police report that, “It should be noted that this was a Friday evening on the International Boardwalk where there are numerous restaurants and bars and places for members of the public to gather to enjoy the area and moderate weather. Based on the time of night, most of the businesses were open and occupied. While walking to the location, I noted families with children as well as elderly people around the area.”
The sergeant continued, noting how he came upon the suspect.
“… I contacted two to three subjects prior to contacting (the) suspect and ordered them to stop skating in violation of the law and to walk away, to which they complied. This was done for multiple reasons in addition to enforcing the law. At the speed that (the skateboarder in question) was traveling, it was my opinion that he was likely going to collide with uninvolved persons or children as he collided with me. During my time (with) the police department, I have responded to similar incidents on the Pier involving both skateboards and bicycles and for this reason, there is longstanding laws prohibiting such activity in the pier/wharf area.”
Further context
The Easy Reader previously reported it was RBPD officer A. Molina who had made contact with the suspect. The early, initial information was given by RBPD.
The skateboarder, for his part, said he is still confused by the charge for obstruction/resisting arrest.
“To be honest, I still don’t know why they gave that charge,” he said.
He explained that he was skating away toward his girlfriend’s car in the parking lot behind where Sgt. Spry stood – just outside the park’s fence where skateboarding is still illegal.
“I was skating on the Pier,” said the 19-year-old. “I’ll happily admit that. But that’s a municipal infraction, just a fine.”
Sgt. Spry also wrote in the police report that the young man was yelling expletives at other officers and not looking where he was going.
The group of officers arrived that night after receiving a call for a “disturbance.” Earlier in the day, an arrest was made and skateboarders at the park then were told it closed at sunset.
Sgt. Spry later interviewed the suspect at the jail in the company of Sgt. Alston.
“(He) went on to say that he was in the area when officers had made an earlier arrest but had his earphones in his ear and did not hear them tell everyone to leave the area,” Spry wrote. “(The suspect) said that when all of the officers returned, he then chose to leave and was heading back to his vehicle. I asked him if he was watching where he was going when skating away from the location and he said that he was ‘not really’ watching where he was going.
“(The suspect) stated that he knows now that I am a police officer and was wearing a uniform but at the time did not realize this. (The suspect) says that his intention was not to run from the police.
“He said near the end of the interview that he was ‘going too quick’ and that caused the contact.”
Since original publication of this article, the suspect asked that identifying information be deleted. ER
