Published: November 16, 2005 09:29 am      

Officers testify in dog-bite lawsuit

On Tuesday, Antonio Chatman lifted his shirt and tilted his head to show scars from a 2001 encounter with a Johnstown police dog.

But city police officers defended the German shepherd they call “Obi,” telling jurors in federal court that the canine would not stop biting because Chatman would not stop struggling.

“I warned him,” Officer Michael Page testified. “They warned him to quit grabbing the dog.”

Page and the city are targets of Chatman’s civil lawsuit alleging police used excessive force in the Aug. 14, 2001 encounter in an alley off Main Street.

The trial’s second day included Chatman, 34, recounting his long criminal history – including an admission that he could not even recall all of his run-ins with police.

But testimony focused on the police dog’s level of aggression, as well as city officers’ conduct when they chased and arrested Chatman on misdemeanor warrants.

Chatman’s attorneys tried to portray the dog as vicious, with a history of failing to respond to its handlers. A former city officer labeled the dog a “good biter.”

Page documented occasions during Obi’s training when a pinch collar or a shock collar was necessary because the dog did not obey verbal commands to stop biting.

“Were there other times when he did not listen?” asked Ebensburg attorney David Beyer, a member of Chatman’s legal team.

“I’m sure there was a time – nothing severe, if that’s what you’re asking,” Page said.

While questioning police Chief Craig Foust, Beyer noted that the dog had “grabbed” an adult after a school presentation in 2000. The encounter resulted in a torn coat sleeve but no injury.

And Foust recalled the dog biting a detective’s foot when the officer “got in the way.”

But Foust also insisted the dog had proper training and accreditation. And he defended his officer’s use of Obi in the Chatman chase, since police contend Chatman was running away and would not stop despite repeated warnings.

City police Detective Don Robertson and Officer George Stevens testified that Chatman was bitten because he struggled with police.

“Page yelled, ‘Hold still,’ so the dog would disengage,” Stevens said, adding that Chatman reached for the dog’s face and was bitten.

Chatman took the stand Tuesday and told a different story.

While acknowledging he was walking quickly to avoid detection by police, Chatman said he did not run until Page released the dog without proper warning.

“When I turned around, the dog was already after me,” Chatman told jurors. “So that’s why I ran.”

Chatman said he was trying to surrender when he climbed onto a Dumpster. But he was pulled down and bitten repeatedly.

“I was trying to be still, but it was kind of hard,” he said.

Chatman attorney Tim Burns showed jurors his client’s blue-and-white shirt, heavily stained with blood from dog bites. And Chatman stood before the jury box to display scars from the incident – including one on his shaved head.

“I don’t feel I was resisting arrest,” Chatman said.

But attorney Steven Ludwig, representing the city and Page, reviewed a court transcript showing Chatman later pleaded guilty to resisting arrest and fleeing police.

“The judge asked you, ‘Are you doing this of your own free will?’ ” Ludwig said. “And you said yes.”

It was not Chatman’s first time before a judge, and some local police officers were well-acquainted with him before the 2001 chase.

Chatman spent the first 25 minutes of his testimony detailing brushes with the law that began in 1989 with an aggravated assault charge.

Other charges against him during the next dozen years included robbery, receiving stolen property, firearm possession, disorderly conduct and driving without a license.

In at least two instances before 2001, Chatman landed in hot water for allegedly fleeing from police.