AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Two Austin Police officers have been indicted by a Travis County grand jury on felony assault charges for their roles in a March 2019 use of force incident, officials announced Friday - a case originally closed by the department after a review found the officers' actions were compliant with department policy.
Officers Chance Bretches and Gregory Gentry were indicted Wednesday on felony charges of Aggravated Assault by a Public Servant. A third officer was no-billed in the incident.
According to a statement from Austin Police Chief Brian Manley, the case stems from a March 28, 2019 incident where the two officers were involved in a drug interdiction operation. They observed two men - one of whom appeared to be engaging in multiple narcotics transactions. Manley said the officers approached the men, taking one into custody and struggling with the other, identified in the indictment as Paul Mannie.
"A significant struggle ensued as the officer’s attempted to overcome the suspect’s resistance, resulting in injuries to both the suspect and the officers," Manley's statement reads. "The suspect was transported to the hospital for treatment of his injuries. This incident was presented to the Grand Jury and resulted in the two indictments."
Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza praised his office's efforts in securing the indictments, nearly two years after the incident in question. “Holding law enforcement accountable when they break the law is critical to rebuilding community trust, and also to the safety of our community," Garza said.
Garza, who was sworn into office earlier this month, has pledged to bring a number of use-of-force incidents before a grand jury over the next few months.
Manley said the incident was reviewed in 2019 and the officers' actions were found to be compliant with the department's policies and training. The city's Office of Police Oversight also reviewed the incident, including video, and APD staffed the case with former Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore. "Based on the Department’s findings that the officers’ conduct was within policy, the case was not forwarded to the DA’s Civil Rights Division," Manley said.
The Austin Police Association, in a statement, said the indictments are nothing more than a "malicious prosecution" on the part of Garza "in an attempt to gain political favor from the activist community that he seeks to serve."
According to the APA statement, Mannie was charged with and eventually plead guilty to a third-degree felony charge of possession of a controlled substance and tampering with evidence, and is currently serving a three year sentence.
"Mr. Garza, hear this," the APA statement continues. "The Austin Police Association will not stand idly by while you use the hardworking men and women of the Police Department as pawns in your delusional game of political chess. We will proactively monitor the actions of your office having potential for extreme negative ramifications on our officers and the community in Austin, Travis County. The APA will take an active stance highlighting to the community your anti-police agenda and motivations behind your political decisions to unjustly prosecute officers who were lawfully fulfilling their duties to keep Austin safe."
Garza released an additional statement Friday afternoon addressing the developments of how the case came to be presented to the grand jury. "The potential criminal conduct in question came to the attention of the Office's Civil Rights Unit last year," Garza said. "Two experienced senior Assistant District Attorneys reviewing the narcotics case were sufficiently concerned by the conduct they observed and independently alerted the case to the unit. The investigation was opened and approved for presentation to a grand jury last year."
Manley said both of the officers have been placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings.