RALEIGH, N.C. — A state trooper is back on the road
following a two-day suspension given after a motorist says he was shot with a
stun gun and repeatedly kneed in the face for calling the lawman a derogatory
name.
Master Trooper Sean B. Davidson served his unpaid disciplinary suspension
earlier this week, Highway Patrol spokesman 1st Sgt. Jeff Gordon said. The
spokesman wouldn't comment on whether it came a result of the agency's internal
review of the Feb. 24 traffic stop, citing the privacy law protecting state
employees.
Daniel Westmoreland said the trooper pulled him over on Interstate 77 in
Iredell County and the two got into a heated argument over how fast
Westmoreland was driving.
"I called him a jackass and a moron, because he was acting like
one," Westmoreland told The Associated Press this week. "He didn't
warn me or nothing. He just pulled out his Taser and shot me. Just like
that."
Gordon said Davidson's cruiser was not equipped with a video camera. The
patrol rebuffed a public records request from the AP seeking the release of the
report required when a trooper uses a stun gun or firearm or the written
statements given by the troopers involved in the incident, saying the documents
were confidential under the agency's interpretation of state personnel laws.
A request for comment from Davidson, 31, was also declined.
Westmoreland, 34, said he was driving in his Toyota pickup with the cruise
control set when he passed several Highway Patrol cruisers parked on the side
of the road. He looked in his rearview mirror and saw one of the troopers pull
out behind him and turn on his blue lights.
As he pulled over, Westmoreland said a co-worker called him on his cell
phone, wanting to know where he was. He was talking on the phone when the
trooper walked up to his window and ordered him to hang up.
"I said, 'This is a business call, give me just one second,'"
recalled Westmoreland, who repairs recreational vehicles from a dealership in
Statesville.
The trooper then tersely asked for his driver's license and registration. A
little nervous, Westmoreland said he handed the officer his license, but also
accidently gave him his bank debit card.
"He took it and threw it at me," Westmoreland said. "That
sort of set me off."
After a heated exchange in which Westmoreland said Davidson used several
four-letter words, the trooper took his license and went back to his cruiser.
A few moments later, a second trooper, Hugh T. Sloop, arrived on the scene.
Davidson then returned to Westmoreland's window.
"When he got back to the car he told me how fast I was going and I
said, 'Man, there's no way,'" Westmoreland recounted. "He said to get
out of the car. I said, 'For what? A speeding ticket?'"
Westmoreland said he looked down toward his lap to put his license back in
his wallet when he was hit with a blast of voltage in his chest. Trooper Sloop
then opened the passenger door and reached for him, Westmoreland said.
"He started yanking on me," Westmoreland said. "I said,
'Will you hold on a dag-gum minute, I've still got my seat belt on!'"
The driver said once Davidson let up on the shocks from his stun gun, he
climbed out the passenger door and followed orders to get on his knees.
"Next thing I know, the guy who Tasered me tackles me from
behind," Westmoreland said. "He was on my head, using restraints like
they're trained to do. I have no problem with that. But he had his knee in the
back of my head. I said, 'Hey man, can't you ease up a little bit.' Next thing
I know he just starts whaling on me. He just reared back with his knee and
started hitting me in the face."
Westmoreland said Davidson cursed and beat him while in handcuffs until
another trooper pulled him off.
Records show Westmoreland was taken to the Iredell County Jail and charged
with speeding 72 miles per hour in a 55 zone and resisting, delaying or
obstructing a public officer, both misdemeanors. On the citation for the
resisting charge, Davidson wrote that he stunned Westmoreland after the driver
called him a profane name and refused to get out of his car.
Westmoreland, who said he's never been jailed before, was released after
his co-worker heard the altercation unfold over the cell phone and posted the $1,500
bond.
A prosecutor later agreed to drop the charges, but only if Westmoreland
made a written apology to Trooper Davidson. Westmoreland said he reluctantly
agreed to sign a letter drafted by his lawyer, who urged him not to try to take
on the Highway Patrol in court.
Records show Davidson served his two-day unpaid suspension Monday and
Tuesday. Payroll records show it was the first suspension for Davidson, who
joined the patrol in 2004. He makes an annual salary of $56,330, following a
2009 promotion.
Gordon, the patrol spokesman, said motorists are obligated to obey the
commands of law officers.
"When you give a verbal command and the driver fails to obey that
command, then based on the officer's opinion he can take the next appropriate
step, including executing an arrest," Gordon said.
Westmoreland admitted he was wrong to call the trooper names, but said he
didn't deserve to be shocked and hit in the face.
"I didn't pose any threat to him," the driver said. "He had
no right to do what he did."