KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ The former police chief of Greenwood, Missouri, who resigned earlier this year, was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday, accused of violating the civil rights of a man he allegedly assaulted while handcuffed, according to prosecutors.
Greg Hallgrimson, 50, of Kansas City, was charged in a one-count indictment, prosecutors in the Western District of Missouri said. The indictment alleges he deprived a person identified as "J.Z." of his rights to be free from unreasonable seizure.
The indictment does not name the person, but Hallgrimson had previously been accused of using excessive force against a suspect named Jonathon Zicarelli. The indictment alleges the assault came on the same day as the incident with Zicarelli.
The indictment alleges Hallgrimson struck J.Z. in the face with his fist while he was not posing a threat, according to prosecutors. J.Z. had been restrained and was sitting in a chair before Hallgrimson threw him to the ground, according to court records.
U.S. Attorney Timothy Garrison said while law enforcement officers serve the public each day, "nobody is above the law."
"Any officer who abuses their authority will be held accountable for violating the Constitution they are sworn to uphold," Garrison said.
Hallgrimson's attorney, Robin Fowler, said Hallgrimson planned to plead not guilty. He will exercise his right to a jury trial, he said.
"He looks forward to all the facts being presented in court," Fowler said, "and has confidence that justice will be done."
In February, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker asked the Missouri Highway Patrol to investigate Hallgrimson's possible role in what happened to Zicarelli, now 29, after he showed up Dec. 17 at the Greenwood Police Department and said he tried to kill his infant daughter.
That day, Zicarelli told officers he placed his daughter in a pond, police said. Hallgrimson and another officer rushed to the icy retention pond on the west side of Greenwood, a suburb of about 5,000 people 20 miles southeast of Kansas City.
There, the officers found the infant unconscious, floating face up in the pond, according to police.
Once they pulled the infant out, the officer and Hallgrimson removed the child's wet clothes and wrapped her in the chief's shirt to warm her body. The child was treated for severe hypothermia, police said.
Zicarelli was placed under arrest. The police chief allegedly used excessive force against him at the police station.
Zicarelli's previous defense attorney, Susan Dill, told The Star in June that video from the body-worn camera of another officer showed Hallgrimson grabbing Zicarelli by the throat, throwing him to the floor and punching him in the face. Hallgrimson sat on Zicarelli's chest as he beat the suspect, whose hands were cuffed behind his back, Dill said.
According to Dill, the police chief told Zicarelli: "You deserve to die."
Dill described the video as "shocking." The chief had to be pulled off of Zicarelli, who suffered lacerations to his face and injury to his jaw, Dill told The Star. The video has not been released publicly.
Investigators from the FBI visited Zicarelli at the Jackson County jail to investigate a possible criminal civil rights violation.
Hallgrimson resigned May 29. His severance agreement showed Greenwood planned to write him a check for $6,500, The Star previously reported.
In December, when police rescued Zicarelli's daughter, Lt. Aaron Fordham called the save "a miracle." Police estimated the child was in the water for 10 minutes.
Zicarelli told investigators he had been planning to kill his daughter for more than 24 hours after having "bad thoughts," according to charging documents. He said he wanted to make things easier for his wife, telling officers he was stressed by the holidays and by trying to provide for his family, police said. His former attorney said he had mental health problems at the time.
Zicarelli has pleaded not guilty to charges of domestic assault and abuse or neglect of a child. He is set to go to trial in December.
