Wilson Smith v. Police Offier Troy Taff, et al.

In April of 2010, Wendt Goss, P.C. settled a very difficult civil rights violation/police brutality case for $235,000.00. At about 1:00 a.m. on December 12, 2006, Terry Smith, Sr. (“Terry, Sr.”) got into a verbal argument with his girlfriend, Anissa Ross, outside of the house owned by his brother, Wilson Smith (“Wilson”). Defendant Police Officers Troy Taff (“Officer Taff”), Manuel Anchondo (“Officer Anchondo”), and Lee Malek (“Officer Malek”) were dispatched to meet with Ms. Ross, who called 911 after the argument ended. The Officers met with Ms. Ross in a church parking lot up the street from Wilson’s home.

Officer Taff testified that when they arrived on the scene, it appeared Ms. Ross had been in some sort of physical altercation – her clothes were in disarray, her hair was messed up, and she had some scrapes and bruises. Terry, Sr., however, testified that he never struck, dragged, or scratched Ms. Ross – he only held her back in a “defensive” way to prevent her further attacks on him. She needed absolutely no medical attention as a result of the incident; however, Terry, Sr. was left with a gash on
his forehead from the altercation.

During the interview, Ms. Ross told the Officers that she did not know where Terry, Sr. was located – she saw him walking in the street earlier; he could have been at Wilson’s house; he could have been at his “auntie’s” house, who lived about one block away; or he could have been somewhere else. When asked whether Terry, Sr. was armed, Ms. Ross said, “No.” Terry, Sr. was described by Ms. Ross as 5'9", wearing a fur hat, black leather jacket and khaki pants. The Officers then drove to Wilson’s house to conduct a residence check to see if Terry, Sr. was at that address.

Importantly, Officers Taff, Anchondo, and Malek were not in pursuit of Wilson; Terry, Sr.; or anyone else in this incident. From the time Ms. Ross and Terry, Sr.’s argument ended to Officers Taff, Anchondo, and Malek’s approach at Wilson’s home, over 15 minutes had passed – there had been plenty of cooling time since the alleged altercation. The Officers did not have a search warrant for the house or an arrest warrant for Terry, Sr. This is especially important as it relates to Wilson’s unlawful entry claim against Officer Malek. The Officers argued that there were exigent circumstances allowing them to enter the house without a warrant – one of the exceptions to allowing a warrantless entry into a person’s home. The Trial Court and the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled, as a matter of law, that no exigent circumstances existed allowing Officer Malek to enter Wilson’s home without a warrant.

Officers Taff and Anchondo stood in the driveway while Officer Malek started to go around to the back of Wilson’s home. Although Officer Malek testified that he could hear an argument coming from inside the house, there was no such argument. Wilson was in his bedroom, lying down, trying to get back to sleep, and Terry, Sr. was in a completely separate area of the house (a back entertainment room) with his son. In fact, nothing can be heard on the audio from Officer Taff’s dashboard camera suggesting that Officer Malek told Officers Taff and Anchondo that he heard an argument coming from inside Wilson’s home.

Officer Taff knocked on the door, and Wilson answered wearing only a bathrobe. When Wilson answered the door of his home, Officer Taff crossed the threshold of Wilson’s front door, grabbed his forearm, and forcibly pulled Wilson out of his home. Officer Taff never identified himself or told Wilson why he would like him to exit his home. After he forcibly pulled Wilson outside, Officer Taff pushed Wilson against the railing on his porch and then threw him down several stairs, where Wilson landed on a concrete walkway on his knees. After being thrown to the ground, Officers Taff and Anchondo put their knees across Wilson’s back and pushed his face into the concrete while handcuffing him. Only 19 seconds passed from the time that Wilson answered his front door until he was forcibly pulled from his home and thrown down his front stairs.

After being thrown down the stairs to the concrete landing below, Officer Malek entered Wilson’s house without permission and without a warrant. He first encountered Terry, Sr.’s teenage son, Terry Smith, Jr. (“Terry, Jr.”), and asked him to come toward the front door and sit on an ottoman. Officer Malek did not ask Terry, Jr. whether his father was in the house. He then walked through Wilson’s house, searching room-to-room for Terry, Sr. Officer Malek found Terry, Sr. in a back bedroom lying on the bed. When commanded by Officer Malek, Terry, Sr. slowly raised his hands and was handcuffed.

The use of force in this case was completely unnecessary and unreasonable. Had Officer Taff not grabbed Wilson’s arm and forcibly pulled him from his home, Wilson would have voluntarily come out to speak with the Officers – he had nothing to hide.

Wilson filed a complaint with the Kansas City, Missouri Office of Citizen Complaints (“OCC”), and an investigation was conducted. Officer Malek was “exonerated” by the OCC, and Wilson’s claims against Officers Taff and Anchondo were “unsubstantiated.”

On the eve of trial, after a hard fought appeal to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, Wendt Goss, P.C. was able to resolve this case during the third Court-ordered mediation for $235,000.00.

Back to all results