Constable’s twin brother denies any wrongdoing
Police unsure who arrested woman
A Homewood man charged with impersonating a constable and illegally taking a woman to jail denied Thursday that he did anything wrong — a claim echoed by his identical twin brother who is a constable and said he was actually the one who handcuffed and arrested the woman.
“I did nothing wrong,” Karl Edmonds, 41, said. “The facts are the facts. It’ll come out when it’s time.”
The Allegheny County district attorney’s office announced Thursday that it had charged Mr. Edmonds by summons with misdemeanor counts of impersonating a public servant, obstructing administration of law and official oppression.
Mr. Edmonds, who is not a certified state constable, is accused of saying he was both a constable and a member of a fugitive task force in order to get Toni Nixon, 19, of Glen Hazel, to turn herself in to him. Ms. Nixon was wanted on a bench warrant for missing a court hearing in a drug case, to which she eventually pleaded guilty.
On March 2, Ms. Nixon was in the process of turning herself in at the Allegheny County Courthouse on the advice of her attorney, Nicole Nino, when she spoke with Mr. Edmonds by phone. He told her that she should have turned herself into him instead of going to the county’s pretrial services division and that only he could clear her outstanding warrant, according to an affidavit. He also told her mother that if Ms. Nixon did not surrender to him, Ms. Nixon could face up to 10 years in prison, the affidavit said.
Ms. Nino told authorities that Mr. Edmonds “told her he was a constable then changed his answer to ‘I’m like a constable.’ ”
Ms. Nixon left the courthouse and went home. There she was met by two men — Mr. Edmonds and his brother, Keith, a certified constable. One wore a uniform, the other had khaki pants, a polo shirt and a badge. “The men placed her in handcuffs and transported her to the Allegheny County Jail,” the affidavit said.
Karl Edmonds declined further comment on the advice of his attorney. But his brother, the constable, said Karl Edmonds is a bounty hunter, or fugitive recovery agent, who did indeed wear a badge but was involved only in finding Ms. Nixon, not in handcuffing or arresting her. Both men are certified under Act 235, a state law that “provides certification to privately employed agents to carry a lethal weapon.”
“I do remember him saying on the phone that he has a constable to make the arrest,” Keith Edmonds said. “He was never overstepping his boundaries and I would never allow it either.”
After turning Ms. Nixon in, Karl Edmonds got a reward from Liberty Bail Bonds, the affidavit said.