The following story was written and reported by Evelyn Red Lodge . All content © Native Sun News.

RAPID CITY, SOUTH DAKOTA –– A former Rapid City police officer lost his appeal against the City of Rapid City in the South Dakota Supreme Court. The Court agreed with his discharge from the police department for using excessive force.

Disturbingly, those who complained about Farmer’s misconduct and cited in this story all have Native sounding names.

Timothy Farmer was a patrol officer from 2005 – 2009. In early 2009, the Rapid City Police Department (RCPD) conducted an internal investigation after a complaint Farmer used excessive force in a North Rapid incident, according to documents.

Supreme Court documents say Farmer investigated an aggravated assault incident on North Seventh Street in March of 2009. When he responded to the report, Farmer learned the victim was assaulted with a pipe by two males and one female.

About five minutes later, Farmer received a police dispatch that a gang fight was taking place near the assault incident. He left the assault victim with a nurse to respond to the gang fight reportedly involving males and a black SUV – which he thought may be related to the assault.

After Farmer reached the general area of the reported gang fight, he observed a light-colored car park in a parking lot. His in-car-video recorded two women exiting the car and then walking in different directions – after he activated his siren and lights while pulling up behind the car.

Documents continue that according to the video, Farmer then ordered the women who were later found to be mother and daughter to get on the ground which neither woman did. “Farmer [then] ran toward [the daughter], saying again, ‘Get on the ground. The [daughter could] be heard saying in a shrill voice, ‘Me? Why?’”

The video then recorded Farmer grabbing the daughter by the arm using a “soft-hand technique” to detain her. The mother took issue with Farmer holding her daughter. After a few words were exchanged between Farmer and the mother, Farmer then believed the mother posed a larger threat. He let go of the daughter and proceeded to use the same soft-hand technique on the mother “forcing her onto the hood of her car.”

Documents continue, “Farmer called for a backup officer. All the while, [the daughter] was yelling at Farmer insisting they did nothing wrong. [The mother] told [her daughter] to run away to her uncle’s house, and [the daughter] headed east, out of sight of the camera.” After back-up arrived, Farmer said he motioned for the responding officer to detain the mother while he went after the daughter.

Documents continue that the video shows Farmer letting go of the mother who ran to and grabbed something from her car. She then ran after Farmer as he pursued her daughter. Documents say all those involved were soon out of the video camera view. However, it was learned later that what the mother had grabbed from her car was her cell phone. She had called 911 as she ran reporting “she and her daughter were being assaulted by a police officer.”

Court documents continue that eventually Farmer took the mother “to the ground and handcuff[ed] her, using a ‘hard empty hand technique’” as he arrested her.

An obstruction charge was filed against the mother but was later dropped.

During the police investigation, court documents say the women were at the parking lot to pick up the mother’s son who, incidentally, had called his mother about the gang fight.

South Dakota Department of Labor findings
After Farmer was discharged from RCPD, he filed a grievance with the South Dakota Department of Labor (SDDL) in late 2009. According to SDDL documents, “The Rapid City Police Department’s officers shall use only that force that is reasonably necessary to overcome resistance from a person being taken into custody, to stop an assault of a third person, in self-defense, or as reasonable and necessary to perform their police functions.”

The SDDL documents also say, “Grievant’s superiors testified that Grievant used poor judgment and tactics when responding to this call on March 3, 2009. To begin with, it was Respondent’s opinion that Grievant should have stayed with the felony assault victim instead of responding to the gang fight dispatch (a misdemeanor).

Dispatch had advised that the fight suspects were men in a dark-colored SUV. The nurses [who reported the original assault call] advised Grievant that the suspects, two men and one woman, were walking north on foot toward the apartment buildings at 1720 North 7th Street. Instead of looking for known suspects of the fight or the assault (based upon sex or mode of transportation), Grievant engaged with two females in a light-colored sedan.”

SDDL documents cited Farmer’s employment record with RCPD stating, “Grievant had five (5) formal and three (3) informal complaints filed against him. One formal complaint alleging unnecessary force and one informal complaint alleging unnecessary force and unprofessional conduct resulted in disciplinary actions against Grievant. The other unsubstantiated complaints involved excessive force (4), failure to take a report (1), and making an improper traffic stop (1).”

Documents also state that in the incident involving the two women, and in previous incidents, Farmer “embellished his written reports to justify his actions and use of force. SDDL cited an incident involving a man’s booking at RCPD and caught on video tape in 2007. The document state Farmer removed handcuffs from the intoxicated man less than two minutes before pulled the man off his chair. The man’s head was subsequently driven into a nearby wall. Citing the video, SDDL found no evidence of provocation by the man. Yet, Farmer testified the man “made a move toward” him.

(Contact Evelyn Red Lodge at welakota@yahoo.com)