Sparks 'begrudgingly' approves $70K settlement

6:00 a.m. Tuesday update: Sparks City Council approved a $70,000 settlement at Monday's meeting to two men who were involved with a lawsuit with the city.

The lawsuit, which had been ongoing for six years, involved an incident between several members of the Sparks SWAT team and two private citizens who wanted to claim damages against the city.

The city believes the officers reacted appropriately to the situation with the two men, but they have decided to settle for financial reasons.

The cost of going to trial would cost around $225,000 just to gather evidence before the trial, according to the city attorney's office.

In her final comments during the City Council meeting, Councilwoman Charlene Bybee called the settlement a decision made "begrudgingly."

"I'm going to support this, but this is tough," Bybee said. "We have to look at the financial impact of the settlement on the city."

4:01 p.m. Friday: At Monday's Sparks City Council meeting, officials will discuss a potential settlement of $70,000 for two men who claim that Sparks SWAT officers illegally detained them after an incident described as "road rage" by the United States District Court of Nevada.

In addition to the alleged violation of their Fourth Amendment rights, the men claim that they were subjected to assault, battery, false imprisonment and malicious prosecution. They also claimed that the City of Sparks was vicariously liable for the officers' actions.

The City of Sparks' legal representation, however, said that the officers reacted appropriately to one of the men allegedly assaulting a vehicle as a result of his road rage.

The incident in question occurred on Sept. 8, 2009, when Nevada resident Richard Thompson and California resident Kevin Battershell were driving together in a pickup truck and towing horses from Silver Springs to Reno on Highway 95. While on their drive, several vehicles, including an unmarked van, merged onto the highway in front of their truck, a merge, they allege, that caused Thompson to slam on his brakes and swerve temporarily into the oncoming traffic lane.

The merging van was driven by a REMSA ambulance medic as part of a convoy of six Sparks police officers who were returning from a SWAT training day outside of Fernley. When the convoy and the two men stopped single file at a red light, Battershell exited the truck and approached the unmarked van. Here, narratives diverge.

The two men allege that Battershell merely knocked on the window of the van, whereas the paramedic alleges that Battershell expressed both physical and verbal anger to the point where he felt genuinely threatened. The paramedic sounded the vehicle's siren, which caused Battershell to return to the pickup truck and lock the doors.

Upon hearing the siren, the Sparks police officers, wearing their SWAT uniforms, exited their vehicles and approached Thompson and Battershell, telling them to get out of the pickup "with profanity-riddled instructions," according to court documents written by Larry Hicks, United States District Judge. The parties also dispute whether the officers identified themselves as police.

"Battershell raised his hands, but he did not immediately exit Thompson's pickup," Hicks' court document said. "Thompson rolled down his window because an officer was knocking on it with a pistol. The officers then opened the passenger door and pulled Battershell out of the truck, handcuffing him. Thompson stayed inside the truck at gunpoint before being ordered to pull over to the side of the road."

At this point, the Sparks officers called the Lyon County Sheriff's Office, who responded about five minutes later. Battershell requested that his handcuffs be loosened, but upon inspection, an officer deemed that they were an appropriate tightness and did not adjust them. Forty minutes after the deputy sheriff arrived, the men were released but cited for assaulting the van driver and resisting arrest, charges that were eventually dismissed.

Battershell and Thompson have since tried to sue the city for damages related to problems like medical bills, emotional distress and pain and suffering.

The city conducted its own internal affairs investigation and did not find fault with the officers' behavior. Sparks Police Department Chief Brian Allen was unable to comment as a part of the settlement agreement, but Doug Thornley, attorney for the City of Sparks, spoke on the city's behalf.

Thornley said that the appropriate amount of force was used in response to Battershell's outburst against the paramedic.

"They were doing what they were trained to do," Thornley said. "(Battershell) wasn't hit, kicked or tased. He broke law, and he was handcuffed until the Lyon County sheriffs arrived on the scene."

So why the $70,000 settlement?

"It's a business decision," Thornley said.

According to Thornley, the cost of going to trial would start at $225,000 just to get through the pre-trial procedure of discovery. On top of that, if the city were to lose the case, attorney's fees would also be involved.

"We figured we were going to spend $70,000 either way, so we might as well spend it to end this," Thornley said.

The $70,000 number was whittled down from the plaintiff's original asking price of $88,000. If the City Council approves the settlement, it will be up to the two men to decide the split amongst themselves.

The plaintiff's lawyer, John Moore, was unavailable for comment at the time this story was published.