A Fort Worth officer whose hero outfits brought joy to sick children is back in jail
A Fort Worth police officer who prided himself on dressing up in superhero costumes and traveling the country to cheer up sick cancer-ridden children was back in jail Wednesday after he was accused of violating a condition of his bond.
Damon Curtis Cole, 44, was booked into the Tarrant County Jail on April 8 and is facing charges of continuous violence against the family and interference with emergency request for assistance, a statement from the Fort Worth Police Department said. Cole was released from jail after spending a little more than four hours in custody, according to records with the Tarrant County District Clerk’s Office.
Total bonds for Cole were set at $6,500, court records show.
Cole was known for traveling across the country to visit children with cancer while dressed up like superheroes from Marvel and DC comics.
A warrant was issued out of State District Judge David Hagerman’s court and Cole was returned to jail early Wednesday, records filed with the Tarrant County District Clerk’s Office show.
One of the conditions of Cole’s bond is that he is to not make contact with a woman who is an alleged victim in the family violence charge. But shortly after midnight Wednesday, police were called to an apartment in the 7300 block of Cascade Court where they saw Cole present, according to an emailed statement from the Fort Worth Police Department.
Cole had previously been served with an emergency protective order prohibiting him from being at this location, police said. He was arrested and is facing an additional charge that he violated a protective order, according to police.
Cole’s attorney, Emily LaChance, declined to comment regarding the specifics of the allegations, but said in an emailed statement that no violence nor any threat of violence occurred in connection with the incident.
These latest allegations stem from a March 26 domestic disturbance call near the 7300 block of Cascade Court, where officers say a woman told them that Cole tried to force her to hit him two days earlier, according to a probable cause arrest warrant.
Later on March 26, Cole forced his way inside the woman’s home, and when the woman said she was going to call 911, Cole grabbed her wrists, knocked her phone away and hit himself in the head with his baton, the warrant said. The woman tried to stop Cole from hitting himself and told her daughter to call 911, the warrant said.
Cole was arrested and information from the investigation will be turned over to the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution, police said.
Cole has been placed on restricted duty — all police duties, badge, and equipment have been seized — and reassigned to a non-police role pending the outcome of an administrative review process, according to police.
This story includes information from Star-Telegram archives
