Hamilton raised concerns about excessive force, Strait says arrest was proper
CLAYTON—Clayton Assistant Police Chief Ryan Hamilton left the force last week after admitting he copied a police video showing the arrest of a 73-year old suspect who was tased and forcibly removed from his pickup truck after a slow-speed chase in May.
Hamilton had raised concerns about excessive force being used to make the arrest.
Police Chief Andy Strait said the arrest procedures used were appropriate. Hamilton violated department policy in copying and sharing video evidence, Strait said.
Attorney Austin Perry, who is representing Hamilton, said the former officer —a 15-year veteran of the Clayton Police Department— “did the right thing,” and it cost him his job.
The video, which has since been shared widely in the community, shows a May 14 police chase that ends with the arrest of Alton Owens, 73, of Clayton.
Owens was charged with nine criminal counts, including DUI, attempting to elude police officers and receiving stolen property.
The truck Owens was driving was later determined to have been stolen from Oconee County, South Carolina.
In the video, Clayton PD Sgt. Travis Gibson is seen giving a series of profanity-laced orders to Owens following a short, low-speed chase with lights and siren, ordering him to “get the (expletive) out of the vehicle” and to “put your (expletive) hands up.”
“I’ll (expletive) shoot you,” Gibson is heard shouting at one point.
According to the incident report filed by Gibson after the arrest, once stopped, Owens was making suspicious movements with his hands and refused to show them as officers approached with weapons drawn.
Gibson reported that Owens assaulted him as officers attempted to remove Owens’ seat belt as they tried to get him out of the vehicle.
It is not clear from the video, which was shot by a police dash cam from behind, what happened inside the vehicle.
“Owens was physically fighting us at this point,” Gibson wrote in his report. “I was able to get the seatbelt undone. Owens grabbed me by the vest and pulled me back in the truck and towards him … I ripped Owens’ shirt nearly off him trying to get him out of the truck.”
After officers shouted commands to Owens to “get on the ground now,” Gibson fired his taser into Owens’ abdomen.
“The taser did not have a very good effect on Owens and he continued to fight,” Gibson wrote. “Officer (Travis) Cross was able to take Owens to the ground. Owens continued to fight and not follow commands. I continued to cycle the taser to no avail. Owens got back up a couple of times and we were finally able to get him to the ground after I delivered three strikes to the back of Owens’ head/neck.”
Owens was finally handcuffed and placed under arrest.
He was charged with attempting to elude police officers, obstructing law enforcement officers, DUI, reckless driving, improper backing, illegal stops, starts and parking here prohibited, brake light violation, felony theft by bringing stolen property into the state and felony theft by receiving stolen property.
Strait said Monday Hamilton expressed concerns about the arrest and the video evidence a few weeks following the incident.
“The assistant chief brought it up to me that there might be a question about the use of force,” Strait said.
Strait reviewed the video with Hamilton, and “due to what I observed on the video and from talking to Officer Cross and Officer Gibson, I felt the use of force was necessary to make the arrest,” Strait said. “Major details of the report matched up with what I saw on the video. Everything appeared to match up with protocol as far as the arrest goes.”
Strait said he discussed the case with District Attorney George Christian “to ensure transparency and that there was nothing I was missing.”
In a strange twist to the story, the incident began when Owens allegedly came to the residence of then-Rabun County Chief Deputy Mark Jones on May 14.
“Chief Jones advised Owens had pulled up at his residence looking for another subject, who is a known drug dealer,” Gibson wrote in his report. “Chief Jones advised me Owens seemed heavily impaired and was driving recklessly as he left.”
Gibson and Officer Travis Cross observed the vehicle Owens was driving turned south onto North Church St. On the video, Owens is seen pulling through a stop sign, stopping and backing up through the intersection of Picket Hill St.
At that point, the video shows the officers activated sirens and emergency lights.
“The driver nearly drove into my patrol unit,” Gibson wrote. “I backed up to avoid a collision.”
The incident report states Owens attempted to accelerate before losing traction on the dirt road he had turned on to and finally coming to a stop.
“Officer Cross and I were preparing for a foot pursuit as the vehicle finally came to a stop,” the report states. “We exited my patrol unit, weapons drawn, and began conducting a felony stop. I was giving Owens loud verbal commands to show me his hands. Owens kept putting his hands down and reaching around in the vehicle.”
A nearby witness later told officers Owens had flashed a “thumbs up” sign as he passed by with the officers in pursuit.
“I spoke with Owens and saw his pupils were constricted, he had rigid muscle tone and his strength was more than one would expect from a person of his age/size,” Gibson wrote. “Owens was making statements about the devil being after him as well.”
Four days after the incident, Gibson learned that the vehicle Owens was driving was reported stolen in South Carolina, which led to additional charges being placed.
Gibson resigned from the Clayton Police Department on Aug. 10.
Strait said the resignation “did not have anything to do with this incident.”
In a letter to Hamilton dated Oct. 15, Strait wrote:
“Between the time of the arrest in May of 2020 and … Aug. 10, the computer storing all Clayton Police Department video evidence was accessed and three copies of the video were produced … It has been discovered that during one of these instances a cell phone was used to record a small portion of the video directly from the computer monitor. This video was then transmitted to an unknown person or persons without authorization from the Chief of Police or the Patrol Captain.
On Oct. 14, Hamilton had confirmed copying a portion of the video, according to Strait.
“You answered that you did know about it and had made the video but did not remember who you sent it to after recording it,” Strait wrote. “This video, whether intentionally or unintentionally, has caused a negative impact on the daily operations of the police department, resulting in a breakdown of trust and morale … As the second highest ranking officer in the Clayton Police Department, it is imperative that those that serve under you feel they can count on you to provide guidance in a critical situation and not compound the problem...The city of Clayton accepts your resignation with the Clayton Police Department effective immediately.”
Hamilton’s attorney said Monday the former officer felt an obligation to report what he felt was an overly-aggressive arrest.
“Ryan became aware of an incident that he felt he had a duty to report to his superiors,” Perry said. “It’s sad that at the end of the day, Ryan gets forced to resign because of something he had an obligation to do. He did the right thing. He did what he had to do and unfortunately that cost him his job.”
Perry added that Hamilton has been “a great police officer.”
“He’s a good person,” Perry said.
Personnel records indicate that Sgt. Gibson’s conduct while making arrests had been cause for concern in the past.
“After receiving notification of a possible Use of Force violation complaint in the arrest of Alton Owens, I again reviewed the video of the arrest with the district attorney,” Strait wrote in a memo to Gibson on July 8. “The amount of force used was appropriate to effectuate the arrest of Mr. Owens.”
However, Strait continued, questions surrounding two other arrests caused concerns that Gibson was “starting to show a pattern of lack of de-escalation techniques.”
Gibson was ordered to complete online training courses in de-escalation options for gaining compliance while making an arrest, as well as a course on ethics and professionalism.
“Sgt. Gibson, you have shown in the past that you are a good officer that is always willing to step up and not only help his fellow officers, but also the community,” Strait wrote. “I have confidence that you will rectify this issue and continue to do a great job for the city of Clayton and the citizens of our town.”
It was unclear if Gibson completed the courses before resigning about a month later.
Gibson declined to comment Monday, citing the advice of his attorney not to discuss the matter.