Opinion ID: 2707
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Testimony of Other Troopers

Text: Summerlin testified that after someone came running down the road wa[]ving their cell phone and stating that they had received a court order (Tr. 691), Zellner was yelling at the Major, pointing his finger[,] saying you should wait for the court order, you should wait for the court order ( id. at 693-94). At the time, Summerlin testified, Major Weber was trying, in a professional and businesslike manner, to explain that the truck was entering solely to refuel an on-site vehicle, and that the project was shutting down. ( See id. at 694.) Q. After Major Weber explained why the truck was attempting to enter and the plaintiff [was] yelling at Major Weber and pointing at him, what happened next? A. At some point in time all I can remember is that as I was looking out I heard someone say everybody down, Mr. Zellner fell down to his knees and folded his legs scissor fashion. Q. Where were you in relation to this? A. I was standing on his left side. Q. What happened after the plaintiff dropped to the ground and said everybody down? A. I had turned to look off towards my left and I could hear the Major say get up. Q. Did the plaintiff get up when the major said that? A. No, he left his hands, he had his legs scissor fashion and his hands were on his knees and his head was down. Q. After the Major asked the plaintiff to get up, what happened? A. The major looked towards me and Trooper Parker and said get him out of here dis con. Q. Get him out of here dis con, what did you understand that to mean? A. That he was under arrest. Q. What was he under arrest for at that time? A. Disorderly conduct. (Tr. 695.) Trooper Kevin Drew testified that he was standing right next to Zellner, when Zellner all of a sudden shout[ed] . . . he wanted everybody to sit down. ( Id. at 665.) Q. After he shouted for everybody to sit down, what did he do? A. He sat down and nobody else did. Q. Where were you when this took place? A. I was behind him, just maybe four to five feet away. Q. What did you do after he sat down? A. After he sat down, I observed the Major come over and talk to him about getting up and moving and . . . Troopers Parker and Summerlin came over too and were negotiating with him to move and about letting the truck in. ( Id. ) Drew's written reports of the incident did not state that Zellner had shouted for others to sit down. ( See id. at 682-83.) Trooper Derrick Parker testified that as, Major Weber was in the driveway telling people to let the truck come through so it could fuel up (Tr. 630), Zellner, who was sipping coffee from a cup in his hand ( see id. at 646), was standing right in front of Major Weber and he was saying something back to Major Weber, Major Weber was asking him to move from the driveway ( id. at 630-31). Q. What happened after that if you remember? A. Mr. Zellner said something, he just dropped to the ground. Q. When you say dropped to the ground, did anything that you said cause him to drop to the ground? A. No. Q. Did anybody hit him or was he in contact with anybody when he dropped to the ground? A. No, he just dropped to the ground and sat down. Q. Would you describe how he dropped to the ground, did he go backwards, to the left or right, straight down? A. Straight down to the ground. Q. Is there any way further that you could describe how he went to the ground? A. No other way, he just dropped straight down and sat down on his butt. ( Id. at 631.) Q. Sir, you said that Mr. Zellner went down on his butt, correct? A. Yes. Q. He didn't go down on his knees, right? A. No. Q. And you were standing right behind him, you would have seen that, right? A. Yes. ( Id. at 655-56.) Q. Do you remember where Major Weber was? A. Yes, he was in the driveway, the middle of the driveway, talking to Mr. Zellner. ( Id. at 632.) Parker, who was standing right behind Zellner ( id. at 656), slightly to his right ( see, e.g., id. at 631-32, PX 19A, PX 19D), did not hear Zellner yell anything to the crowd: Q. Now, when Mr. Zellner went down, you said nobody said anything to him at that Point, is that correct Did you say anything to him? A. No. Q. Did anybody else say anything to him? A. No. Q. Did you hear Mr. Zellner say anything? A. I didn't hear him say anything. . . . (Tr. 652.) Trooper Michael Lewis testified that he saw Zellner and Major Weber talking. He could not hear the conversation, but said he saw Zellner sit down: Q. After the truck began to attempt to enter the driveway, and the people moved in front of it, and Major Weber was talking, what happened next? A. Around that time I observed the plaintiff move into the center of the driveway, and then he sat down after having a discussion with Major Weber, which I could not hear, he sat down. Q. At the time that he sat down, were any troopers in contact with him at that time? A. No. Q. Where specifically, did he sit down; in the road, the driveway or somewhere else? A. Right in the middle of the driveway. Q. After he sat down, what else did you observe with regard to the plaintiff at that time? A. I observed Troopers Parker and Summerlin lift him and attempt to remove him from the scene. (Tr. 743-44.) Lewis, who did not testify that Zellner yelled anything to the crowd, wrote a memorandum on the incident, which did not indicate even that Zellner sat down. At no time did Lewis ever report to anyone in writing that he saw Zellner sit down. ( See id. at 759-61.)