Federal Trial Set to Begin for Oxnard Police Officer

The federal trial of an Oxnard police officer accused of beating a burglary suspect with a flashlight and then lying about it is to begin Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.

It is the second trial for Officer Robert Flinn, 30, who last year was acquitted in Ventura County Superior Court on charges of using excessive force during a 1996 arrest. The jury deadlocked on two other charges.

Like the Los Angeles police officers in the Rodney King case, Flinn is now being charged with two federal civil rights violations for unnecessarily beating suspect Juan Lopez.

Flinn, a seven-year veteran who has been described by colleagues as an exceptional police officer, has pleaded not guilty to the federal charges. He faces up to 20 years in prison and $500,000 in fines if convicted.

For Ventura County, the case is significant. It marks the first time a local officer has been prosecuted for civil rights violations in federal court.

For Flinn, it is another wrenching legal battle.

“It is extremely tough on him and his family,” said Los Angeles defense attorney Barry Levin, who has criticized federal prosecutors for pursuing the case.

For local law enforcement, the prosecution of a police officer already cleared of wrongdoing hits a raw nerve.

“We are not real happy with it,” said Steve Moore, president of the Oxnard Peace Officers Assn. “The district attorney’s office took this to trial and vigorously prosecuted this case. . . . The jury did not convict.”

But federal prosecutors say their case differs significantly from the state trial.

Flinn faces two charges: He is accused both of violating Lopez’s right not to have police beat him, and Lopez’s right not to have false charges leveled against him.

The beating allegedly occurred after Lopez stole battery chargers from a neighbor’s garage on Jan. 27, 1996, and police chased him through an Oxnard neighborhood.

Flinn allegedly struck Lopez with a flashlight as he was surrendering in a driveway. With at least one other officer watching, Flinn hit Lopez again and kneed him in the face, prosecutors said.

Later, they allege, Flinn filed a false report accusing Lopez of battery for resisting arrest.

Levin declined to comment on the details of Flinn’s defense.

Over the last few months, he and Assistant U.S. Atty. Jonathan S. Shapiro have sparred in court motions about which evidence should be presented to the jury when testimony gets underway this week.

U.S. District Judge Steven V. Wilson has settled many of those issues, and is expected to take up unresolved matters at a hearing this afternoon.

Jurors will not be told the outcome of the state trial--or even that there was one. They also will not hear evidence about Lopez’s criminal history. They’ll hear that he used heroin on the day of the pursuit but they will not hear about any prior drug use.

Lopez, 31, has a long history of petty criminal convictions.

Shapiro plans to call about 13 witnesses, several of whom testified at the Ventura County trial. He also plans to present new evidence that was not heard by the Ventura County jury, such as DNA evidence and expert testimony about the injuries sustained by Lopez.

Still in dispute is whether police experts can testify about use of force. That issue is expected to be considered by the judge today.

During the state trial, Flinn spent several months on administrative leave. This time, he will remain on active duty in the department’s detective division. Oxnard Assistant Police Chief Tom Cady said the department has assigned a commander to monitor Flinn’s trial, which is expected to last two weeks. Moore said he intends to be there for opening statements as well.

Meanwhile, officials in the district attorney’s office have distanced themselves from the case, saying it’s now in the hands of federal authorities.

“We tried it,” said Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael K. Frawley, who prosecuted Flinn. “Now it’s their ballgame.”

During the Ventura County trial, the prosecution described Flinn as a “bully with a badge” and accused Oxnard police of maintaining a “code of silence” to protect him.

The accusations created a deep rift between the district attorney’s office and the Oxnard Police Department.

Relations had begun to improve when a federal grand jury handed down the two-count indictment against Flinn in May.

Now, officials are looking forward to a final resolution.

“We are eager for this to come to a close,” Moore said. “And we are confident it will be the same conclusion reached earlier in this jurisdiction.”