‘He didn’t have any right to touch me,’ man says at Fort Worth police officer’s trial
A man who says he was attacked by an off-duty Fort Worth police officer and two hospital security officers testified that the police officer hit him in the face before placing him under arrest.
Attorneys representing the police officer, Jon Preston Romer Jr., focused on testimony saying that the officer was trying to escort the suspect, Henry Newson, from the hospital but Newson was non-compliant. Newson says he had just completed treatment at the hospital and he was waiting for a ride.
Romer is on trial this week in a Tarrant County courtroom on a charge that he lied to a grand jury that was investigating the alleged assault. He also faces charges of official oppression and making a false report to a police officer, but the trial this week focuses only on an aggravated perjury charge, according to a prosecutor.
In a video shown to the jury, Romer can be heard saying “Let’s go,” and then placing his hands on Newson’s shoulder. Newson testified Wednesday that he was waiting for his mother to pick him up from Texas Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth when the alleged attack occurred.
The video footage shows Romer punch Newson and wrestle him down to the floor of the hospital. Romer is joined by two other security officers in pinning Newson to the floor.
During the struggle and after things have calmed down somewhat, Romer explains to Newson that he is being arrested for resisting arrest, the video shows. When Newson complains that he did not touch the officer, Romer says he does not have to touch him to be charged with resisting arrest, and calls what they were doing the “dosey doe.”
The move that Newson made to push Romer’s arm away as the officer tried to grab him was enough to trigger Romer’s response, the police officer says in the recording.
Romer can be heard in the video telling Newson that he did not want to arrest him, but after they started “dancing,” Romer said, he had no choice.
Newson testified Wednesday that he was talking to his father on a cell phone that he had borrowed from a bystander because questions from Jeremy Flores, a hospital security officer, made him feel uncomfortable.
“At the time, I didn’t feel safe,” Newson said. “I felt uncomfortable the whole time. “
Newson explained the questions he was being asked by Flores prior to Romer’s arrival put him on edge because they were, in his estimation unnecessary. Newson said he even gave the phone to his father so he could talk to Flores.
Newson said he felt even more uncomfortable after Romer arrived and started placing his hands on him.
“We were going around in a circle because he grabbed me,” Newson testified. “I was basically trying to leave but I didn’t understand why his hands were forcibly on me.”
Newson testified that he was not resisting and at no time made any effort to remain in the hospital. He said he told Romer not to touch him.
“There was no need for him to touch me,” Newson said. “He didn’t have any right to touch me. That’s my belief.”
Newson’s behavior described as erratic, non-compliant
The Fort Worth Police Department placed Romer on restricted duty pending the outcome of the trial. Romer cannot carry a gun or badge, nor does he have any police authority, according to Lt. Michael B. O’Neil, a Fort Worth police spokesman.
If convicted, Romer could face up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Flores, who also testified Wednesday, said he was called by a dispatcher to go to the area where Newson was because he was acting suspiciously. Flores said when he got there Newson would not answer any of his questions, so he called in Romer.
Flores said Newson’s lack of cooperation offended him, particularly an exchange where Flores asked Newson if he knew what hospital he was in and Newson said, ‘I told you that, brah.”
Flores can be heard on the video replying: “I’m not your brah.”
Flores said that he heard Romer say “let’s go” two times, but testified that he never heard Romer say you are under arrest until after Newson was on the ground. Flores described Newson as being non-compliant and called his behavior erratic.
The special prosecutor for the case, Russell Wilson, asked if there were any signs in the hospital saying that visitors had to answer all of a security guard’s questions, or if there were any rules saying how long people could wait in the lobby before they had to leave. He also asked if a person would be impaired from making his hands available to have handcuffs placed on them if three men were on top of him.
Wilson also asked this: “At no time did you tell Officer Romer to go into a grand jury and lie to them, did you?”
Flores replied that he did not.
Newson, who testified that he had just spent two days in the hospital due to food poisoning, was charged with resisting arrest and criminal trespass, but those charges were dismissed in March 2017 at prosecutorial discretion.
According to documents filed with the court, when Romer appeared before the Tarrant County grand jury investigating this matter, he allegedly provided false testimony about his interaction with Newson and the follow-up investigation. It is also alleged that Romer failed to acknowledge that he had previously made false statements related to the contact with Newson, court documents say.
The prosecutor also alleged that Romer failed to document that a security officer’s body-worn camera captured the incident under investigation, failed to document that Romer told a security officer to cut off his camera, and failed to document that Romer struck Newson when he was handcuffed and sitting on a bench.
This story was originally published December 4, 2019 at 2:25 PM.
