Grand jury indictment of Dover officer comes as a shock to police
Corporal Thomas Webster faces a charge of assault second degree for actions he allegedly took the night of the controversial arrest of Lateef Dickerson in 2013.
But Dover Police say, yesterday’s indictment was a bombshell, since a grand jury chose not to indict Webster for this same incident just one year ago.
“We were very surprised,” says Lieutenant Jason Pires with the Dover Police Department.
Investigators say back in August 2013, Webster responded to the Hess Gas Station on Route 13 in Dover for complaints of a fight with one of those involved possibly having a gun. Webster and another officer found Dickerson, who apparently matched the description of one of the people involved in the fight. The officers reportedly held him at gunpoint, giving Dickerson verbal commands to get to the ground. While he attempted to comply, police admit they have video from a patrol car that shows Webster kicking Dickerson in head
A doctor at Kent General later determined his jaw was broken. Webster was placed on paid leave pending an investigation.
In March 2014, the Delaware Attorney General’s office took the case before a grand jury and they did not return an indictment. The U.S. Attorney’s Office then took the case and found no civil rights violation. After that, Dover Police say they conducted an investigation of their own.
“We found that his actions that evening were outside our policies and procedures,” says Lieutenant Pires. “We acted appropriately and took the measures were supposed to take.”
Dover Police could not comment on what those measures were. However, by June 2014, Webster returned to full patrol duty.
According to a spokesman for Attorney General Matt Denn, the case, which happened before he was sworn into office, was brought to his attention last week. After that, he thought it was necessary to have the grand jury take another look, and that’s when they decided to indict Webster.
“That was the first we were told that it was ever being re-investigated,” says Lieutenant Pires. “Once we see what the outcome is, that will determine where it goes for us.”
In a separate legal action, the ACLU is suing Webster and the city over the incident, which is now in the negotiation process.
Kathleen MacRae, executive director with the ACLU, says their focus is Dickerson’s injuries, how they were caused, and whether or not Dover Police training and policy played a part.
“It certainly supports our theory that what happened was a very serious and we would say overstep of police authority,” she says.
Corporal Webster is now on leave without pay. He has a case review on May 28th in Kent County Superior Court.
