Austin officer fired for use-of-force violation

Action stems from October encounter with prostitute.

An Austin police officer was fired Friday for violating policies against dishonesty and excessive force during an encounter with a suspected prostitute in October.

A disciplinary memo filed against Officer Robert Mathis on Friday said he was working a daytime shift with Officer Nathaniel Stallings on Oct. 6 near Georgian Drive and Powell Lane when they saw a man in a vehicle talking to a woman they knew to be a prostitute, the memo said.

According to the document, the officers let the man go with a warning, then turned their attention to the woman.

The memo said the officers approached the woman and ordered her to come over to them. The woman asked why and both officers grabbed her, the report said.

According to the memo, Mathis told the woman, “we’re not going this route,” and she continued to protest, saying she hadn’t done anything.

Mathis told the woman “It’s called manifestation of prostitution,” then told her “you’re about to get your ass slammed.”

The memo said the officers “did not provide her with any verbal instructions or direction (e.g. ‘Put your hands behind your back,’ or ‘You’re under arrest.’)” the memo said.

Mathis told the woman “don’t make me slam you” again before Stallings pushed the woman’s head onto their patrol vehicle, according to the memo.

“Her face forcefully impacted the hood,” the document said. “She cried out, “Ow! Oh my God! Oh my God! What are y’all slamming me for?”

The three continued to struggle, and Mathis delivered six knee strikes to the woman’s left side and told her to stop resisting, the memo said.

The report said fewer than 10 seconds elapsed from the time the officers got out of their vehicle until they grabbed the woman.

Furthermore, the memo said Mathis’ report only mentioned four knee strikes instead of six, and that he failed to disclose his threats to “slam” the woman.

He told internal investigators the use of force was inevitable “due to a nebulous ‘feeling’ he had about the encounter,” the memo said.

The document said Stallings admitted that they should have taken more time to communicate with the woman, and that the use of force would likely have not been necessary.

Mathis, however, failed to take responsibility for his actions, and blamed the woman, the memo said.

Mathis had 10 days from the date of his suspension to appeal the action.

The memo makes no mention of disciplinary action against Stallings. However, interim Austin Police Chief Brian Manley confirmed on March 15 that Stallings had been indicted by a grand jury for actions taken while investigating prostitution on Oct. 6.

An evacuation order has been lifted for the Dallas neighborhood where widespread gas leaks have forced thousands from their homes and led to a house explosion that killed a 12-year-old girl.

Natural gas supplier Atmos Energy announced Thursday afternoon that residents of about 25 houses and some nearby apartment units were allowed to return home. They had been ordered to leave Wednesday.

Hundreds of homes have been without gas for weeks following earlier evacuations in the aftermath of the Feb. 23 house explosion that killed the girl and injured four in her family.

Atmos is currently replacing pipe and service lines in the neighborhood.

A report released last week by the National Transportation Safety Board says leaks in the neighborhood near Dallas Love Field Airport were first detected Jan. 1.

More than 1,300 people have signed an online petition calling for the removal of Katy’s embattled school superintendent.

Greg Barrett, a Katy-area businessman, has accused Superintendent Lance Hindt of bullying him more than 30 years ago when the two were classmates. The claims were made during a board meeting March 19. During Barrett’s talk, Hindt seemed to laugh but said nothing.

Barrett’s accusation was caught on video and ultimately captured headlines in The Washington Post and the New York Post, which both mentioned Hindt’s laugh.

The following day Hindt issued a statement saying he didn’t remember his middle school classmate and that the claim “simply isn’t true.” During a board meeting Monday, Hindt did not address the specifics of the allegations.

“I recognize I am not a perfect person,” Hindt said.

Hindt’s statements didn’t stop more than 1,300 people from signing a petition demanding his termination.

The petition also references a now-dismissed 1983 lawsuit claiming an 18-yearold Hindt severely beat another man.

An embattled judge in Houston who was suspended last year without pay and faced a review that could permanently remove her from the bench has resigned.

The Houston Chronicle reported that Harris County Justice of the Peace Hilary Green, who’d been a judge since 2007, cited family reasons when she quit Tuesday.

The Texas Supreme Court suspended Green amid allegations she “sexted” in court and used illegal drugs. The State Commission on Judicial Conduct earlier investigated Green amid complaints since 2012.

Records show Green, in response, acknowledged she illegally obtained prescription drugs, used marijuana and engaged in sexually explicit and drug-related text messaging with a bailiff.

Green had faced trial in April. County commissioners will appoint a replacement for the Democrat to serve until the Nov. 6 election.