The Martin Firm - selected case information

LEDGER-ENQUIRER

Friday, November 16, 2001

Woman wins suit over false arrest

Phenix woman accused of stealing is awarded $90,000

By Jim Houston Staff Writer

A Phenix City woman whose ex-employer swore out a warrant charging her with theft won a $90,000 verdict Wednesday from a Muscogee County Superior Court jury.

Maria Chavez sued Earl Allen, owner of Coqui Videos, for false arrest after Allen had her arrested June 14, 1999. Allen took out a warrant accusing Chavez of stealing about $6,000 from his business May 28, 1999. Chavez was arrested, booked into the Muscogee County Jail and forced to post bond to regain her freedom.

But a Muscogee County grand jury refused to indict Chavez, and Columbus police testified there wasn't sufficient evidence to support an arrest, attorney Frank Martin said.

"He took the law into his own hands," Martin said of Allen's decision to take out a warrant after police refused to do so.

Martin urged jurors to correct the "miscarriage of justice" and protect Chavez from those who would "run roughshod over little people."

Defense attorney Clark Adams said Allen confronted Chavez about taking the money from his store and had reason to be suspicious of her. He also said that Columbus detectives told Allen they would not arrest Chavez based on their investigation. But detectives typed the warrant and drove Allen to a judge's office so he could swear out the warrant, he said.

Adams said he expects Allen to appeal the verdict, primarily based on Judge Frank Jordan's pretrial ruling that prevented Allen from showing that Chavez had failed a polygraph test.

"This gave him a reasonable basis to suspect her," Adams said.

Martin argued in pretrial motions that Chavez did not have access to legal advice before agreeing to take the polygraph test. He said she was on medication that hampered proper application of the test.

The jury awarded Chavez $60,000 in compensatory damages, $20,000 in punitive damages and $10,000 in attorney's fees.

Martin said he will file a motion today asking Jordan to adopt the verdict as an order of the court. The defense will have 30 days from that order to file notice of appeal.