PUBLIC INFORMATION — The Fresno Police Department has finally released the names of two officers who, on February 7, held down and punched a mentally ill homeless man they were arresting in a public park for a parole violation. The May 27 identification of officers Gross and Payn (seriously) came in response to an ACLU lawsuit under the California Public Records Act.
The Fresno Bee reports that "(p)olice have asked the Fresno County District Attorney's Office to
charge him with felony resisting arrest, but prosecutors have declined." According to IndyMedia.org, Glen Beaty has been confined in a jail cell with 10 other prisoners since his arrest, with one hour exercise a week, refusing to take medication for his condition.
The Bee adds that while refusing to name the officers involved, the police department did reveal Beaty's criminal recorda 2004 felony case of deterring an officer by threat or violence, and
a 2006 misdemeanor case involving violation of a court order. This disclosure has led to a damages claim filed by Beaty's lawyer for the unlawful disclosure of criminal history.
