Annapolis police have shelved plans to release the findings of an investigation into a botched drug raid after being notified by attorneys for the victims of their plans to sue.
Officials have acknowledged that police made a mistake when they burst into the wrong apartment June 6, breaking down the door, tossing a concussion grenade and allegedly kicking a man in the groin. Citing "miscommunication and misinformation," police announced that the department would review the incident and police procedures and release a report in two weeks.
But officials said yesterday that the department will withhold the report after being contacted by attorneys for two of the tenants, Silvia Bernal and her husband, Elmer Rene Perez, who said they intend to file a lawsuit.
"The report's not coming out anymore, now that the specter of litigation has arisen," said Officer Hal Dalton, a spokesman for the department.
Attorneys for the couple, Harry J. Trainor Jr. and Carroll McCabe, were unavailable to confirm the possibility of legal action. At the time of the incident, immigrant advocates called the raid an outrage for the city's growing Hispanic population.
Bernal and Perez were preparing dinner in their home at the Spa Cove complex on Primrose Road when they said they heard the door being battered. Then, they said, about a dozen masked officers burst in with rifles drawn and threw a small grenade that released smoke and a flash of light and noise. The man and woman were handcuffed. A second couple who live in the apartment arrived shortly after.
All four are Salvadoran immigrants who speak limited English. In June, they said through the attorneys that the officers were wearing masks, did not identify themselves, and damaged personal belongings while conducting a search that turned up nothing.
Members of the Police Department's Emergency Team quickly realized they were at the wrong address. Police apologized and left, and later called for an ambulance. Three of the tenants were treated at a nearby hospital and released.
Dalton told The Sun last month that in 15 similar instances in the past three decades, the city had compensated the victims. It was not clear whether the city has made any payments to Bernal and Perez.
justin.fenton@baltsun.com