Coastal
Post Online
October,
2003
Two Month Wait For Facts In 911 Caller's Suspicious Death
By Jim Scanlon
Cary Grime collapsed and died after a violent struggle with two Marin
County Sheriff's Deputies in front of a fast food restaurant in Novato on
August 17.
Only one witness has come forth so
far, a waitress on her way home from work. She was quoted in the SF Chronicle
(San Rafael man beaten to death by cops, family says. August 22, 2003),
stating, "One [Sheriff's Deputy] was grinding his head into the ground and
the other was twisting his arm in a way that made me cringe".
The witness was also quoted saying,
"He was completely subdued and screaming 'Help, they're going to kill me,'
and 'They're breaking my arm.' "She said she watched as the officers
roughed him up, then pulled him into the patrol car by his cuffed wrists."
"I don't care if he was drunk or
what" the Chronicle quotes her,
"or what he was being arrested for, what they did wasn't right. I think
it's disgusting"
Grime (pronounced Grim-ay) made four
911 calls for assistance in locating his car and reportedly sounded
disoriented, but before the Novato Police responded, a Sheriff's Deputy
attempted to arrest him, apparently not checking in with Novato PD and
mistaking his confusion for alcohol intoxication.
The Marin County Coroner's Office
recently announced that it will convene a Coroner's Inquest on October 16 at
the Hall of Justice, Civic Center San Rafael. The hearing will be open to the
public. Facts will be presented, testimony taken, and at the close or
proceedings, a Coroner's Jury will reach some kind of verdict on the circumstances
of Grime's death.
This will mean that two months time
will have elapsed before official reports, facts and testimony will be made
public. The only medical information made public so far was leaked by someone
with access to Grime's official medical records.
It is difficult to understand why a
highly unusual and unprecedented Coroner's Inquest is being held to determine
why Grime died. This is why we have medical doctors and why we have a Coroner's
Office. Why do we have a
lengthy delay and a wall of silence surrounding this case?
The fact that the entire
investigation has been conducted behind closed doors only breeds suspicion of
attempts to delay and, in effect, conceal what happened. The public has a right
to know if in fact there is evidence of police misconduct and if there is it
must be stopped.
Wives, children, family and friends
of a deceased person, and even strangers, are quite naturally and
understandably upset and may not be at all sympathetic to, or understanding of,
the arresting officers. Quite naturally in such cases, the threat of official
investigation, costly litigation and even, in rare cases, criminal prosecution
looms. And if police officers are doing a good job they shouldn't have to live
in uncertainty any more than absolutely necessary.
This is why the leaking of apparently
accurate information about Grime's blood alcohol level of .03 (low) is so
inexcusable. (The legal level for DUI is 08). Although .03 might be seen as
exculpating Grime, it prejudicially puts the focus on him. He made four 911
calls for help. Why did it take so long for help to arrive? What was a Marin
County Deputy doing within the jurisdiction of the Novato Police? Usually
police are sensitive to other police departments operating within their jurisdiction.
Who were the officers? Are there any previous, similar incidents.
The Novato Advance noted the logged
times of certain events. At 2:31 AM,
"the" call (1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th?) came in to Novato Police
and an officer was dispatched at 2:53 AM. When the officer got to the scene,
Grime had been subdued and was under arrest.
Harry Willis the attorney
representing the family at the time, was quoted stating that sometime between
2:31 AM and 3:26 AM when EMTs from San Rafael were dispatched, Grime either
suffered "cardiac arrest of
"had problems breathing."
Staff allegedly began administering CPR at 3:30 AM and the EMTs arrived
at 3:34, administering aid at 3:35. At 4:04 he was transported unconscious to
Kaiser Terra Linda where he was examined and placed on life support. He never
regained consciousness. It was estimated, according to Willis, that his brain
had been deprived of oxygen for approximately 10 minutes. Two days later he was
taken off life support and died.
An autopsy was performed on August
21st and the funeral service took place five days later. Cary Grime, a Marin
County native, a musician. is survived by his wife and three children.
Grime's widow referred all questions
to David Anderson the attorney for the family. Anderson said that he was not
aware of a Coroners Inquest ever having been held previously in Marin and so
far he was not sure of the guidelines, how the jury will be chosen, how many
persons etc. The Hearing Officer is an East Bay attorney Harry Willis (no
relative of the previously mentioned family attorney).
Anderson was not aware of how Willis
was selected or what his experience is. Anderson said he was hopeful that there
would be a full, fair hearing of all evidence in this very suspicious death.
Coroner's Inquests are considered to
be "inquisitorial" rather than "adversarial" as in regular
court hearings, and are considered fact finding inquiries that do not attempt
to fix blame. They date back into Medieval English Law. They are some
similarities to Grand Juries which are often criticized as being easily
manipulated by the judicial officer in charge of presenting evidence. Grand
jury recommendations are frequently accepted and then ignored.
It remains to be seen how this
unprecedented Inquest will play out in modern Marin.