In an immediate decision from the bench after a three
hour trial, a Washoe County Justice of the Peace found Washoe County
Airport Authority Officer Mike Boyd not guilty of battering an employee
of a security service at the Reno-Tahoe International Airport. The case
arose when an employee of ITS services, Phillip Henderson, alleged that
Officer Boyd placed a steak knife confiscated from a passenger against
his chest and worked the tip through his shirt and a pack of cigarettes
into his skin for no apparent reason. Henderson also alleged that Boyd
threatened him after the incident when Henderson asked the officer not
to converse with another employee at the security station.
Instead of reporting the alleged incident
immediately, Henderson did not report the alleged attempted battery to
his supervisor for a number of hours and failed to allege any problem on
a mandatory supervisor reporting from covering just such instances. In
addition, it was later discovered by the defense investigation, over the
course of the next three weeks, Henderson gave multiple conflicting
statements to investigators that cast substantial doubt on his story.
Officer Boyd adamantly denied the activity described by Henderson had
occurred at all and provided information to investigators that showed
his innocence. Interestingly, the defense further discovered that
another ITS employee, who witnessed the entire event, gave an entirely
different version of the alleged incident which corroborated Officer
Boyd’s unequivocal denials of the allegations made and further showed
that not only had no battery occurred but there were no threats of any
kind made thereafter.
Despite the clear flaws in the case, the Washoe
County District Attorney filed misdemeanor battery charges against
Officer Boyd and proceeded to trial in the matter, apparently due to the
continuing demands by the alleged victim that the matter not be dropped.
Pursuant to policy, the Airport Authority placed Boyd on administrative
leave with pay pending the outcome of the case. Boyd refused to accept
any consideration of a plea bargain knowing the truth would be exposed
at trial.
On January 13, 1999, the case was heard in Reno
Justice Court. The alleged victim, Henderson, claimed that Boyd had
indeed taken the knife, placed it against his chest and pressed it hard
enough to penetrate clothing and a nearly one inch thick carton of
cigarettes in his pocket to his skin. Henderson was then faced by the
defense with his delayed, belated and conflicting written statements and
was requested to explain why, if the incident had happened as he
described it, there was no initial report of it, no tear mark on his
shirt, no mark of any kind found on his chest, and importantly, no pack
of cigarettes turned over to investigators by him at all, much less one
with a penetration tear in it. The witness could not explain the
untimely reporting, the lack of marks or tears to his shirt or body and
then amazingly claimed he must have thrown the pack of cigarettes away.
The Court then heard from one of the investigating officers who related
his concerns about the victim’s story. Another ITS employee, who was
three feet away from Henderson at the time of the incident, testified
that she saw the entire matter and at no time did Officer Boyd do
anything to Henderson, much less engage in the activity alleged.
Security Officer Deborah Cook testified that she also observed Henderson
immediately after the incident and for some hours thereafter and at no
time did he appear to rub his chest in pain or indicate in any manner
that he had incurred any injury during his contact with Boyd. Further,
she was present during conversations between Boyd and Henderson, and
related that at no time did Boyd threaten Henderson. In fact, she
related that it was Henderson who was belligerent and aggressive with
Boyd. The evidence was then closed and brief arguments were made.
Justice of the Peace Barbara Finley then immediately ruled that Officer
Michael Boyd was not guilty of the offense charged, citing a complete
lack of credible evidence that the incident has occurred in any manner
as testified to by Phillip Henderson, which ended the matter. Officer
Boyd has returned to his duties with the Airport Authority and was
pleased that justice was done and his name has been cleared.
Officer Michael Boyd was represented by LDF panel
attorney Mark A. Kilburn of the Law Offices of Mark A. Kilburn.
