San Diego sheriff seeks probe in use of pepper spray at political event

Top officials at the San Diego County Sheriff's Department have ordered an internal affairs investigation into the use of pepper spray by a deputy to make an arrest at a fundraiser in Encinitas for a Democratic congressional hopeful.

The investigation was ordered after Francine Busby met with Undersheriff Bill Gore to complain about the use of pepper spray at her fundraiser Friday at a home in the upscale Cardiff neighborhood. Busby is seeking her party's nomination for a rematch next year with Rep. Brian Bilbray (R-Carlsbad) in the 50th Congressional District.

"We cannot take action based on media accounts and will conduct a thorough inquiry to include interviews of witnesses at the fund-raising event," said Gore, who becomes sheriff on Friday after the retirement of Sheriff Bill Kolender.

The incident began about 9 p.m. after a deputy responded to a neighbor's complaint of excessive noise.  When one of the owners of the home where the fundraiser was being held, 60-year-old Shari Barman, refused to give her age to the deputy, the situation quickly deteriorated.

According to people attending the fundraiser, the deputy began pulling on Barman's arm, despite pleas from her partner that she had just undergone surgery. People then surrounded Barman to prevent her from being arrested and one person held onto her leg to keep the deputy from taking her to his squad car.

The deputy called for backup and used pepper spray on the crowd. More deputies arrived. Barman was arrested for allegedly assaulting a deputy, and a second attendee, Pam Morgan, 62, of Rancho Santa Fe, was cited for obstructing an officer.

Busby said today that the deputy "clearly overreacted."

"There was no noise, there was no problem, these were middle-aged men and women talking very quietly," she said.

A former Cardiff school board member, Busby said some of the people at the fundraiser began choking from the pepper spray and needed help from paramedics.

"We need an investigation to make sure this never happens to anyone else," she said.

Busby, 58, ran unsuccessfully against Republican Duke Cunningham in 2004. Once he was ousted from office by a criminal conviction, she ran in 2006 against Republican candidate Bilbray, who formerly represented a congressional district south of San Diego.

-- Tony Perry in Encinitas

Comments

[M in Encinitas]

This is the third incident I have personally either experienced or heard of with San Diego County Sheriff's deputies in Encinitas in the last month!

For myself, I pulled into a "suicide lane" coming from my home street, and I was stopped by a sheriff's deputy saying I had strayed too far into an area with a double line. Well that area has a double and and a broken line, and it is SAFER than pulling into traffic, but I was told that I would be cited if I kept telling the officer that. He was overbearing, belligerent, and nigh on rude.

Next, my niece was with a friend who was in a car that matched a description of a car the police were looking for. it was the wrong car and the wrong person, but that wasn't discovered until after the officer had rudely checked the ID of all in the car. He was so awful that my niece was shaken up.

And now this....

Francine Busby is the nicest, most dedicated public servant you would ever come across. Fundraisers by their nature are not exactly wild parties. The use of pepper spray by an officer is unconscionable.

We are upper middle class, college educated, law abiding, taxpaying citizens, and yet, 3 times recently the deputies have been way out of line. What is going on here?

[rodii]

I don't mean to be disagreeable, but you got a ticket for something you don't feel like you did, which is an everyday occurrence,... and checking everyone's ID in a car under suspicion? It would be a mistake if they *didn't* do that. It comes down to the fact you don't think the officers were polite while they did these ordinary things, which is unfortunate but hardly comparable to what happened at the Busby fundraiser.

[Concerned in SD]

I heard about this from a witness. People 60+ years old shoved down on a concrete floor in broken glass, arms twisted up behind back, in their own home...on a noise complaint at 9:30 PM? No other neighbors were disturbed by noise. I suspect we're going to find the complainer's motive was sheer political hatred. In the incident report, the complaint says something about a "Democratic Rally" (it was a fundraiser). And some jerk had been yelling epithets during the 20-minute speech. It looks like the complainant used the 9-1-1 emergency line and public LE resources for his own little hate binge. And an inexperienced deputy was a willing tool, escalating a possible citation into a melee. Bloody insane.

[Cal Damage]

They sent in eight cars and a helicopter, and then paramedics had to help those overcome by pepper spray.

That's some fine San Diego Republican 'shock and awe'.

Hope they're shocked and awed by the expense of it all, including the summary judgement against the department after the lawsuits.
And I hope it all gets donated to Busby.

[Sick and Tired]

There's NO imaginable excuse. The sheriff should be fired. The officer should go to jail. The police agency should be put under outside oversight. Do I expect this? Ha.

[J in Mira Mesa]

San Diego law enforcement officers need to take a lesson in public relations. They treat everyone they encounter as dangerous criminals.

[Continuum]

As usual the Sheriff's department will investigate itself, and find no fault of their part.

No change will occurr, until and unless, someone sues the deaprtment and these over-hormoned stimulated rambos are dismissed from the force.

[TeamBusby]

A helicopter for a noise complaint? Overkill perhaps. I thought the proper response for a nose complaint is to visit the house, after all the real work is taken care of because it isn't even after 10:00 PM. What more is there to a noise complaint before 10 PM? Isn't this an upper class neighborhood? When will the 9-11 call be released? What did this guy say to make the Sheriff respond with a full swat response? Or did the neighbor call his buddy the Sheriff and get him to respond. This story is as strange as the Mark Sanford disappearance story! Can the department be trusted to investigate themselves? Hmmm.....

[jared]

Gotta keep in mind, Internal Affairs does not horse around. Just like prosecutors represent the people (not the state, that is the State's Attorney's job), Internal Affairs represents the people to ensure that the police are being policed. They'll get to the bottom of this obscene and unconstitutional behavior.

[B Pamplin]

So when exactly did the officer feel he was in danger of being harmed? When a 60 year old woman wouldn’t give her age? This is a pretty sad, but typical, over reaction by police officers in north county San Diego. There are not enough checks on Police officers to ensure they are using their weapons properly, and only in situations of self defense. The time is now to make some changes. Officers are allowed too much power without any checks and balances, creating situations like this were peaceful citizens are harmed for absolutely no reason. Way to protect your citizens San Diego Sheriff.

[The Ridger]

"We are upper middle class, college educated, law abiding, taxpaying citizens, and yet, 3 times recently the deputies have been way out of line. What is going on here?"

You're being treated like everyone else.

Nobody should be mistreated by cops, but until they start doing it to people like you, you don't complain. Which is why they eventually feel empowered to do it to you, too...

[Richard Salzman]

I chose to honor Shari Barman, the homeowner who was pepper sprayed and arrested, by making a donation to the fundraiser she was hosting for Francine Busby and would encourage others to do the same:
https://www.completecampaigns.com/public.asp?name=Busby&page=28

[Michael Roberts]

it sounds like a civil rights violation. Jail the cop and the neighbor that called. People like them need to spend a few years in jail over things like this to deter other nutcases from pulling these stunts.

[Zen]

Reminds me of that recent video of a law enforcement official tasering an elderly grandmother after he got her out of her vehicle.

I grew up in San Diego and the police and sheriffs have long had a reputation for exceeding their limits and for brutality. I especially remember the reputation that the police of La Mesa county in San Diego had for being trigger happy baton wielding apes.

[Zach Van Draden]

That was a clear example of why there was once a hit television show featuring Don Knotts as Sheriff Deputy BARNEY FIFE... I am afraid however, this IDIOT is Deputy Fife's ALTER ego... What this San Diego Deputy did to a peaceful gathering of women at this in home political fund-raiser IS the clearest example of personal incompetence and poor professional know how in response to a call that he had NO BUSINESS taking. He is a fool!

I am sure that I am not the only one to have ever noticed, OR remarked that TYPICALLY it is the Sheriff's Department's around this nation that seem to employ at LEAST ONE, but more likely several WEAK-MINDED BUFFOON'S like Deputy Marshall Abbot who parades around in his squad car like something important behind A big shiny tax-payer funded tin badge... The man isn't qualified to be a second rate DITCH DIGGER.

[Richard Salzman]

It's the job the District Attorney to "police the police" and if this case is not investigated by the DA, then it's time for San Diego to elect a new one.

That's what we did up in Humboldt County, and I can tell you it's made a huge difference in the behavior of law enforcement, which once ran rough-shot over this county.