‘Malicious’: California Cops Raided Family’s Home Over Gold Plated Handcuffs Reportedly Lost While Attempting to ‘Illegally Detain’ Black Man for Not Having a Driver’s License, Attorneys Say
Posted by Carlos Miller | Published on: November 20, 2024. Atlanta Black Star
Reprinted by Imanche Sunny on: November 23, 2024
A California cop with a history of lawsuits against her will be sued again after harassing and profiling a Black man over a pair of gold-plated handcuffs she lost while trying to detain him earlier this year over questionable circumstances.
Vallejo Police Lt. Jodi Brown was a sergeant when she confronted Robert Baker in April, a 21-year-old Black man who was sitting in his car on the side of the road waiting for a friend. Brown demanded his identification, prompting Baker to ask why she needed to see his ID if he was doing nothing but sitting in his car, minding his own business.
But fearing for his safety, Baker handed her his California Identification Card, according to a claim filed against the city of Vallejo last month which is the first step in filing a lawsuit against a government agency.
Brown then walked away and returned with a pair of gold-plated handcuffs with her name and badge number inscribed on them, telling Baker she was going to detain him for not having a driver’s license.
The claim states that Brown was very angry, describing her face and neck as turning red as she slapped the gold-plated handcuffs on one of Baker’s wrists.
Fearing that she was going to kill him, Baker drove away with the handcuffs still on his wrist and with Brown still in possession of his identification card.
Three days later, more than a dozen Vallejo police officers broke into the home listed on the identification card where Baker had been living with his parents, Jamal and Kellyann Colter.
But the family was in the process of moving to another home so they were not at the home and most of their belongings were packed in boxes.
When the couple returned to the home after receiving a call from a neighbor, they discovered the cops had boarded up their home and towed their daughter’s car away, making it impossible for them to even enter the home until several days later when they discovered their entire house had been ransacked and all the boxes they had packed up had been opened and emptied on the floor.
They also discovered a warrant signed by Brown on the counter that stated they were searching for “Sgt. Brown’s personally inscribed pair of gold plated handcuffs, which Sgt. Brown apparently lost while racially profiling and trying to illegally detain Mr. Baker, who Sgt. Baker had no cause to contact, demand ID from, or detain at the time she tried to cuff him,” according to the claim filed by attorney Mellisa C. Nold of the Nold Law firm in Vallejo.
But at no point did police obtain an arrest warrant for Baker for any alleged crimes, including leaving the scene of the detainment with the gold-plated handcuffs — which the claim states is a violation of departmental policy.
“What judge would sign a full fledged whole house search warrant for a misdemeanor on something for an officer’s personal things?” Nold said in an interview with the Vallejo Sun.
“If you have enough reason to believe that this person did that, then go arrest that person.”
Pattern of Harassment
The harassment continued on May 3 when an unnamed Vallejo police officer began following Baker on his motorcycle and swerved into him, causing the young man to crash and break his leg, the claim states. But Baker who was transported to the hospital was never cited or charged for any alleged crimes.
Then on May 18, San Francisco police pulled Jamal and Kellyann Colter and their minor children over at gunpoint, telling the family that they had received notice from Brown that the car they were driving was connected to a robbery and the driver should be considered armed and dangerous.
According to the claim:
There was no legitimate legal basis for reporting the vehicle to be occupied by someone “armed and dangerous.” There was no lawful basis for claiming the vehicle was involved in a robbery. The labeling of the seizure notice intentionally and unnecessary endangered Mr. Brown and his family.
Mr. Baker was no unknown to Sgt. Brown, she was in possession of his California ID, which is why she knew his name and where to find him. Mr. Baker did nothing to present himself as armed and dangerous during her encounter with Mr. Baker, evidenced by her allowing him to drive away.
Sgt. Brown’s actions were malicious and with intent to cause Mr. Brown harm because she was upset that she lost her personalized engraved gold-plated handcuff(s) while racially profiling and terrorizing an African American resident.
The claim also states that inquiries made to the Solano County Superior Court system, the Solano County District Attorney’s Office and local bail bond companies have no listed arrest warrant for Baker.
Despite the obvious red flags against Brown, the Vallejo Police Department promoted her from sergeant to lieutenant since the initial attempt to detain Baker.
Last year as a sergeant, Brown made a total of $226,000 which included a base salary of $129,000, overtime pay of $58,000 and “other pay” of $39,000, according to Transparent California which lists the salaries of government employees in the Golden State.
Prior Lawsuits
Brown has been working for the Vallejo Police Department since 2013, according to the Vallejo police website which states “her exemplary service has been recognized with major awards and decorations, including the Medal of Merit and the Good Conduct Medal.”
But court records show she has been listed as a defendant in at least three prior lawsuits over the years over incidents like tasering a 71-year-old disabled man over a traffic dispute in 2021; arresting a Black man for loitering when he was only talking on the phone with his wife on a public sidewalk in front of a friend’s house in 2014; and forcing another man out of his car in a DUI checkpoint when he refused to hand over his driver’s license after asking her what probable cause she had to demand his identification in 2014.
She was also suspended for a day in 2018 for two collisions in 2017, including one where she crashed her patrol car into another car during a pursuit but failed to stop to see if the other driver had been injured and failing to report the crash to her superiors for 47 minutes as well as failing to report the crash on her police report, according to the Vallejo Sun.
In 2021, a Vallejo police officer filed a complaint against her and another supervising. accusing them of “retaliation,” “harassment” and “hostile work environment,” the Vallejo Sun reported.
But the latest accusation against her over the gold-plated handcuffs is the most bizarre.
“They kicked in our side gate, they kicked in our garage door, they kicked in our security screen and then kicked in the door,” Jamal Colter told the Vallejo Sun. “We were in the process of moving and they dumped out all the boxes. They broke mirrors, broke glasses, broke her crafting cups, ransacked upstairs, ransacked the garage, and threw everything around.”
Kelly-Ann Colter wrote the following on her Facebook page last week after the Vallejo Sun article was published.
“They came in and broke down the gate and door, the garage door, and literally trashed our boxed possessions, ready to move. Please share this and make this known. VPD is dirty. Whenever they have a case with a death, they bend their badges. Make this spread. My son was wrongfully accused of a crime. Luckily, my son is ok after they made him crash and break his leg in May. Justice has to be done.”
Seven months later, it does not appear as if Brown has recovered her personally inscribed, gold-plated handcuffs.
The racial dynamics involved in this case cannot be overlooked, as they may reflect broader systemic issues within law enforcement practices. It’s essential for law enforcement agencies to conduct transparent investigations and for communities to engage in dialogue regarding policing practices, accountability, and reform.