Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, April 13, 1991 TAG: 9104130389
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium
After an eight-day trial, the U.S. District Court jury concluded that Melvin Moore, 22, of Hampton, was not entitled to damages.
An obviously dejected Moore left the courtroom without comment. Bernard Holmes, his attorney, said no decision has been made on an appeal.
Moore contended he was handcuffed and lying on the ground when an officer identified in the lawsuit only as "John Doe" came out of a crowd of people and hit him, causing a deep gash on his head.
The scar still is visible, "but you cannot see the scar on the inside," Holmes said in closing arguments.
Holmes said Virginia Beach police had adopted a "get tough" policy toward the mostly black, college-age crowd that usually came to the city on the Labor Day weekend for an informal gathering known as Greekfest.
Police were trained in crowd control measures and were equipped to strictly enforce the law, he said.
"The difference, ladies and gentlemen, and the dividing line was one of color," Holmes said. "That became the basis for distinguishing those who were friends and those who were foes."
Assistant City Attorney L. Steven Emmert said police had just the opposite instructions.
Considering that police had rocks and bottles thrown at them, their restraint was remarkable, Emmert said.
The weekend was marked by violent confrontations between youths and police, and dozens of beachfront businesses were looted.
Moore was arrested by a private security guard, Bryon Fritz, after Fritz said he saw Moore running from a looted sportswear store with an armful of clothes.
Moore was convicted of burglary and larceny, but the convictions were overturned after a newspaper investigation disclosed that Fritz had lied during Moore's trial in Virginia Beach Circuit Court.
by CNB