Alleged victim posts complaints and photos on Facebook, police department responds

By Jason Emerson

Editor

A local woman has taken to Facebook to accuse a Manlius police officer of using excessive force against her for no reason, causing scratches and bruising and terrifying her children who were in the car, during a traffic stop on July 25.

While Manlius Police Department officials agree there was a traffic stop on July 25, they say the event unfolded far differently than is being portrayed — and they have body camera and car camera footage of the entire incident to prove it.

The alleged victim, Tara Morgan, has stated on her Facebook page that she is seeking an attorney to represent her, while Manlius police officials have begun an internal investigation of the incident in response to Morgan’s complaint.

According to Morgan’s Facebook post (her page name is Tara MiloHazelnut), she was taking her daughter to a doctor’s appointment the morning of July 25 when she was pulled over by a Manlius police officer for what she knew was not having car insurance. As she was speaking to the officer, he asked her if there was marijuana in her car, to which she said no.

According to Morgan, the officer asked her to get out of the car so he could search it for drugs, to which Morgan refused. The officer called for backup, after which Morgan was dragged out of the car physically by two Manlius police officers. “Together, they pulled me out of the car by my arms, shoved me face first to the ground and handcuffed me,” Morgan wrote. They put her in the back of a police car and searched her vehicle, during which no marijuana was found, she wrote.

Morgan stated that the officer told her after she was released that they had subdued her because she was “resisting arrest.”

While Morgan was not arrested for having marijuana or any other drugs in the car, her car was impounded and towed because she was operating the vehicle without insurance. Standard police procedure when impounding a car is to search it and inventory the contents, according to police.

Morgan posted photos on Facebook showing a torso with a large bruise and scratches and an arm with scratches. She alleges in the post that the photos are of her body and the injuries were caused by the Manlius police officers using excessive force, although there is no face in the photos to see the person’s identity.

Morgan posted her story on Facebook asking people to read and share it. As of Thursday afternoon, the post had been shared nearly 1,500 times.

On July 26, the Manlius Police Department issued a response to Morgan’s accusations on the department’s own Facebook page, which stated that her allegations of excessive force were not true. “The person was removed from her car after she refused lawful orders from police officers. The amount of force used was the minimum necessary, based on her resistance,” the post stated. “The Manlius Police Command Staff reviewed all of the evidence in this incident and has determined that the officers involved acted appropriately, professionally and within the policy of the Town of Manlius Police Department.”

In an interview with the Eagle Bulletin, Manlius Police Captain Kevin Schafer reiterated what was posted on the department’s Facebook page, stating that Morgan’s accusations of excessive use of force were “not true. Period.”

Schafer said he is conducting an internal investigation of the incident because the department investigates all allegations of misconduct that are made.

While Morgan did not speak to police or register her complaint with any police official before posting her story on Facebook — and she refused to speak with Schafer when he called her on July 27 to interview her for his internal investigation, he said — Schafer said he still considers her Facebook post a complaint of misconduct and will therefore undertake an internal investigation.

Schafer said he could not comment on whether the photos Morgan posted on Facebook of her alleged injuries were accurate or not, but said her alleged injuries are part of his investigation.

Schafer said all three police officers and both police cars on the scene of the July 25 incident were equipped with cameras. “We have the entire incident documented on camera, my statement is based on that,” he said.

All three officers involved in the incident are still on duty and have not been put on leave because of the allegations of excessive force, Schafer said. He said such action would only occur if an incident involved a death or serious injury. “This is not a significant use of force by any standard,” he said.

Morgan told the Eagle Bulletin she is working with her attorney on the case. She otherwise had no comment.

When asked what town of Manlius residents should take away from this incident, Schafer said people should “comply with what an officer asks them to do … cooperate, and then if they believe anything was inappropriate, to contact the department.”

Schafer said the department has a policy in place for accepting complaints, and anyone may walk in to the police station or call the department to register complaints.

The Manlius Police Department is located at 1 Arkie Albanese Ave., Manlius. The main phone number is 682-2212 and the website is townofmanliuspolice.com.