A Baltimore city judge declined to dismiss assault charges a second time against two police officers accused of attacking a man in a Federal Hill pizza store, finding that the officers do not face double jeopardy in the new case.
While the judge?s order is under appeal, Officers Michael Brassell and Jack Odom are scheduled for a December trial date in a case that has taken a somewhat torturous route through the court system since the October 2005 incident at Maria D?s.
A district court judge tossed out previous assault charges against Brassell and Odom in May, finding that prosecutors neglected to follow the correct procedures pursuing a case against on-duty officers.
Both men are accused of drunkenly arguing with Akhenaton Bonaparte and two young women with him that night, wrestling Bonaparte onto the hood of a car and choking him after he swung at one of them, charging documents say.
“I never thought it would take this long,” Bonaparte said Friday. “If this was me and I assaulted two Baltimore city police officers, what do you think the outcome would be? Trial would be swift.”
Despite the delays, prosecutors haven?t given up on the charges, city State?s Attorney?s spokesman Joseph Sviatko said.
“We believe that there was a crime committed here,” he said, “and we intend to pursue the case.”
Defense attorney Gavin Patashnick declined to comment on the still-pending case.
Days after the case was thrown out inMay, prosecutors filed new charges against Odom and Brassell in Circuit Court. Sviatko said the state maintains the pair were not on duty at the time of the alleged attack.
Defense attorneys argued at a hearing last month that the district court case was thrown out at trial, which they said rendered the new charges a form of double jeopardy.
Circuit Judge Albert Matricciani disagreed.
Trial is scheduled in Circuit Court on Dec. 6.
