Cover-up in Sallisaw

The Sallisaw mayor says there is no cover up of a shooting by a
police officer, even though police refuse to give any facts or
information in the case. Police have ignored repeated requests for
interviews, they have refused to make public any police reports or
respond to a faxed list of questions.

“I’m not going to make you a whole lot happier,” said Mayor George
Glenn, who has been in office for 22 years. Chief of Police Wayne
Craighead was also first elected to office 22 years ago, according
to Glenn. Craighead has been away all week on vacation, as has his
assistant. When a dispatcher was asked who was in charge, he said he
was not authorized to give any information to the press.

Police in this little town of 6,500 on the Arkansas border have been
accused of orchestrating a cover up of a police shooting Oct. 23.
Patricia Eymer was shot in her home by an officer while she was holding
her 4-year-old child. Police were in the process of executing a search
warrant when the incident occurred. Several people were arrested and the
officer was given time off with pay while an investigation takes place.

Arrests were made, but evidence listed in court documents does not
support the charge of possession of a controlled substance, possession
of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, and use of a police
radio in the commission of a felony.

Repeated efforts by WorldNetDaily to get information from the police
have resulted in a complete lack of cooperation. Despite the police
efforts to keep information from the press, much has been learned.

At 7 a.m. last Friday morning, Det. Larry Blount led a team of
Sallisaw officers on a drug raid at the home of Steve and Patricia
Eymer. He was assisted by officers Dawn Jerman, David Bethany, Freeman
(first name unknown), and John Owens. Travis Holman is mentioned in the
evidence report, but the police claim he is not an officer and they will
not say who he is.

Police refuse to explain what evidence they had to justify the need
for the search, nor will they explain why it was necessary to conduct a
no knock search in a pre-dawn raid. Neighbors say they believe another
neighbor falsely told police that the Eymers were making methamphetamine
and selling drugs.

Steve Eymer was still in bed, but was awakened by his wife and left
the bedroom to see what was happening. James Hinkle, a cousin, had
arrived a few minutes earlier with his girlfriend Tamara Bedwell. They
were having a cup of coffee with a man who they allowed in the house
because they were led to believe he was a friend of the Eymers. The
Eymers insist that they had only met him for a few minutes the day
before and did not consider him a friend to be let in so easily.

Police have refused to identify this man, but Hinkle claims he saw
the man write his name at the police station. He says it was either
Dwayne or Dwight Malcolm. The man called himself “Sales,” according to
Mrs. Eymer.

The Eymers live in a very modest single-wide mobile home. The door
was easily made to open after the officers banged on it with their fists
several times. It opened on its own, according to Hinkle, and the
officers charged in with shot guns and pistols drawn.

Police told everyone to freeze and hit the floor, and they met with
no resistance. Hinkle says he was moving slowly for fear police would
think he was reaching for a gun, and he was kicked to the floor by
Owens. Officers quickly handcuffed everyone, except Mrs. Eymer who was
in the bedroom dressing her 4-year-old.

“I heard him (the police officer) say, ‘Come out with your hands up.’
I said, ‘OK, me and my daughter’s coming out, and I am unarmed,'” she
explained.

Although Bethany was standing facing the bedroom door with his gun
out, Owens left Hinkle on the floor and rushed to Bethany’s side.
Malcolm had also gone to the hall leading to the bedroom and was on the
floor blocking the path.

Mrs. Eymer says her 4-year-old daughter, Casey, was scared and she
was holding her to prevent her from running. Lights were on, and the
police were using flashlights. Mrs. Eymer says her movements were slow
and cautious. Owens shot her with no warning, and for no apparent
reason.

A dispatcher, who would not give his name, said that the Eymers and
Hinkle are lying. He claims that Owens was trying to change his gun from
his right hand to his left in order to reach for his flashlight when the
gun accidentally went off. Hinkle said he did not see any movement of
the gun or reaching for a flashlight. Mrs. Eymer says she had eye
contact with Owens and that he did not do anything other than shoot.

However it happened, Mrs. Eymer was shot by a powerful 45-caliber
hollow point bullet designed to spread out into a mushroom as it
penetrates to maximize damage.

Because Mrs. Eymer was slightly bent over to protect her daughter,
the bullet entered the top of her shoulder and traveled at an angle
destroying the top of the arm and shoulder bone. Doctors say it is
remarkable that the bullet stopped before reaching the lung. After some
healing takes place, the doctors will determine whether an artificial
shoulder can be fashioned. Mrs. Eymer is at risk for losing her arm.

Police asked, “Are you hit? Are you hit?” Mrs. Eymer was in shock and
took time to answer that she was. Police proceeded to place their
suspects in patrol cars and search for evidence. Although an ambulance
came quickly, police instructed the paramedics to remain at the scene
and not go to the hospital.

All the officers then left and booked their suspects in the city jail
before returning to escort the ambulance to the hospital. Police have
refused to explain why this delay took place.

The search warrant indicates that Det. Blount had found evidence to
suspect that a methamphetamine lab was being operated in the Eymer
residence, and that drugs were being sold from there. A request for the
affidavit filed with the judge has been made to learn what evidence
Blount had to support his request for the warrant.

The warrant also states that the search should take place in
“daylight.” The raid took place 45 minutes before sunrise. The warrant
did not specify that it was a “no knock” or “dynamic entry” warrant, but
the Supreme Court says that officers can make such an entry in limited
situations.

The Supreme Court has held that dynamic entry can be used when
officers fear that announcing their presence could endanger their lives
or give criminals time to destroy the evidence they are seeking. There
are critics of the policy who say it violates the Fourth Amendment,
which protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.

“If the Fourth Amendment is about anything, it’s about a distrust of
this kind of police behavior,” said Tracey Maclin, a law professor at
Boston University who has written briefs for the Supreme Court dealing
with no-knock police raids.

“The officer and the people involved, Mrs. Eymer, don’t need to have
anything running out with what happened,” said Mayor Glenn in a phone
interview with WorldNetDaily Thursday. “It’s not fair to the officer if
it was an accident. So our policy is to wait until we have a complete
report back and a complete investigation by the Oklahoma State Bureau of
Investigation, OSBI. And at that time you don’t have to worry. It will
all be made public.

“We’re certainly not trying to cover it up. No one’s saying it didn’t
happen. We’re saying it happened. We regret that it happened, and it’s
being investigated right now and we’re waiting for a report. You can
take it and make it look like we’re covering it up, but that’s the way
we’re handling it,” said Glenn.

Calls to neighbors of the Eymers, to business owners in Sallisaw, and
to local members of the press revealed unanimous concern about the
Sallisaw Police Department. All were fearful of retaliation if their
names were used.

“If you use my name I won’t even be able to spit on the sidewalk
without some cop arresting me,” said one man.

All who were interviewed expressed shock and concern over what had
happened, but they were not surprised. Several said they had fear
something similar could easily happen to them. “These cops are in their
own world here. They know they can get away with a lot,” said one
business owner.

“Well, I won’t argue with you on that,” said Glenn. “I don’t think
that that’s the truth. I don’t know who you’ve talked to, and I try to
keep a cross reference. I can take you to 50 people who I will guarantee
you will say that any time you want to, but I can take you to all the
rest of them and let you question them without me, and they don’t feel
that way. But you can find that kind of an interview if you work on it.”

WorldNetDaily didn’t have to “work on it.” Twelve calls were made to
phones that were answered. Four people would not talk at all. All the
rest spoke negatively about the police and the Sallisaw “good old boys,”
as they called them.

“We’ve got a real nice town here,” says Glenn. “I wish you’d come and
see it some time. We’re not as bad as what you picture. I can’t say that
based on who you’ve talked about your picture shouldn’t be that way, but
we are a very friendly town and I don’t think you’ll find that even over
5 percent of the people in this town that think the police are mean.”

The mayor was asked why the chief of police and his assistant were
both on vacation during the same week. He was also asked why the police
executed a warrant well before sunrise even though the warrant specifies
the search was to take place in daylight.

Glenn’s only response was, “I read all your stuff, your 10 pages or
however. But anyway — won’t keep anything from you and as soon as we
hear something we’ll let you know.”

Meanwhile, the Eymer children are still being held in an undisclosed
location by the child protective services. Grandparents are being forced
to move from Texas to Sallisaw in order to gain custody. The child
protective services have never been willing to talk to WorldNetDaily.

The evidence gathered from the Eymer residence included several pipes
that a teen-age boyfriend of their daughter admits are his. Several
empty plastic bags were found, and a police scanner was in the house.
There were no drugs found, according to the list of evidence on file
with the Sequoyah County Court. The affidavit which was used by Blount
to obtain the warrant has not been made public.

Despite the fact that police say they are under orders to remain
quiet, the mayor and city attorney both claim police can say anything
they wish.

“As far as I am concerned, you are welcome to talk to any member of
the Sallisaw Police Department. However, no police officer has a duty to
talk to new reporters,” said John R. Montgomery, Sallisaw city attorney,
in a faxed statement to WorldNetDaily.

“I think you’ve been talking to people who don’t want to talk to you,
and as our city attorney pointed out to you, we’re just starting the new
FOP and we really can’t ask them to say something. Like he told you, if
they want to tell you something, they can,” said Glenn.