Medic`s Report Key in Lawsuit Against Fla. Cops

Nov. 02--BARTOW -- Two Lakeland Police officers were negligent in August 2015 when they left an intoxicated, 29-year-old Lakeland man along the side of U.S. 98 North, allowing him to be permanently injured after he was run over about an hour later, according to a lawsuit filed by the man and his parents.

David Kidd, who states he'll never walk again without assistance, claim in the lawsuit filed Monday in Circuit Court that Officers Tyler Powell and Keaton Vandersteen had told paramedics they would take Kidd to the hospital because he was so intoxicated he posed a danger to himself.

After the paramedics left, the lawsuit states, the officers left Kidd walking away from the roadway. About an hour later, the same paramedics responded to a call that someone had been run over in that area. Upon their arrival, they saw it was Kidd.

Polk County Fire Rescue paramedic Sabrina Graham later would file a report criticizing the LPD officers' actions. That two-page report is included with the lawsuit.

The lawsuit, which also names Police Chief Larry Giddens and the city of Lakeland as defendants, alleges the officers were negligent and violated Kidd's constitutional rights. Kidd and his parents, Ronald and Shirley Kidd, are seeking unspecified damages exceeding $15,000.

Kevin Cook, the city's spokesman, said Tuesday that it's the city's policy not to comment on pending litigation.

An internal investigation cleared the two officers earlier this summer. The officers said Kidd told them he didn't want a ride home, according to the internal affairs report.

In the lawsuit, filed in Polk Circuit Court by Tampa lawyer Barry Cohen, Kidd claimed the LPD officers said it would have taken too much time to transport him to the hospital.

"During subsequent investigations concerning the manner in which David Kidd came to be lying in the U.S. 98 traffic lanes only an hour after (LPD officers) were supposed to have transported him to a medical facility, it was learned that Officers Powell and Vandersteen, instead of taking David Kidd into custody and transporting him as they had promised (paramedics,) had instead decided that dealing with David Kidd and transporting him to the hospital would entail too much time and paperwork on the part of the LPD officers and that they did not want to spend three hours at the hospital dealing with David Kidd," the lawsuit stated. "One of the LPD defendant officers stated that he was already behind on his ticket quotas and did not want to spend time dealing with David Kidd."

Kidd was lying in the traffic lanes along U.S. 98 North near Crevasse Street in Lakeland when he was struck and dragged beneath a vehicle about 3:45 a.m. Aug. 19, 2015. The impact crushed his pelvis and legs, and fractured several ribs. He also would be treated for lacerations to his liver, urethra and abdominal wall, facial fractures and a brain bleed, according to the lawsuit. He was hospitalized for four months and underwent dozens of surgeries for his injuries.

At the time he was treated at the hospital, the lawsuit states, Kidd's blood-alcohol level was 0.295, which is more than three times the legal limit of 0.08.

Because Kidd was highly intoxicated, the lawsuit states, the officers had an obligation to ensure he was safe from danger.

"These dangers specifically included the readily foreseeable dangers and risks that would result from abandoning someone with his level of intoxication and inability to care for himself or make rational decisions, on the side of a major thoroughfare in the dark early morning hours," the lawsuit stated.

Powell, 27, had been with Lakeland Police Department for about 2 1/2 years when this incident occurred. He resigned from the department in good standing in June, said department spokesman Sgt. Gary Gross. Vandersteen, 26, has been employed by the department for three years, working in patrol. Gross said he spoke with both of them Tuesday and each declined comment. He also declined comment on behalf of the department.

In sworn testimony during the department's internal investigation, the officers said they had talked with Kidd to see if he was able to make rational decisions. Vandersteen said under oath that Kidd told them he didn't want a ride home nor did he want money for a taxi.

"David Kidd asked if he was free to leave and when told yes by Officer Powell, Kidd retrieved his backpack and walked away from the scene," internal affairs investigator Lt. Steven Pacheco wrote in his report.

Copyright 2016 - The Ledger, Lakeland, Fla.