At 10:38 p.m. police were called to Stan and Joe's Saloon, where they found an unconscious man lying on the street. An Annapolis ambulance crew took the man to the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, where he was reported in stable condition.
The victim's mother was on the scene and told police a man hit him. She also noted her son had been drinking.
Witnesses said he was hit by James Joseph Thornley Jr., 37, at the entrance of the bar. He reportedly fell and struck his head on the pavement.
In an interview with police, Thornley said the man walked into the bar and exposed himself. Thornley said he escorted the man out of the bar. Minutes later, the 43-year-old man tried to enter the bar again.
According to the doorman, Thornley confronted and yelled at the victim at the entrance. The doorman tried to thwart Thornley, but he got a punch in anyway.
The doorman did not witness the alleged indecent exposure. No one else saw it either, police said.
Thornley was taken to police headquarters for questioning. Prince George's County police were notified and sent a representative to Annapolis.
Thornley was not charged and was released from custody.
"We don't usually charge on a misdemeanor offense we do not witness," said Maj. Scott Baker, department spokesman. "But we did notify his agency and they sent someone up here."
The Prince George's department could handle the incident administratively, Baker suggested.
"And what (the victim) does criminally, is up to him," Baker said. City police did advise the victim of his legal options.
If an internal investigation by Prince George's County police gleans enough evidence, an officer could be sanctioned for conduct unbecoming a police officer, said Sgt. Michelle Reedy, a spokeswoman for that department.
"An administrative board would weigh the case based on the preponderance of the evidence, not beyond a reasonable doubt like regular court," Reedy said.
An officer could be subject to sanctions ranging from being written up to termination. "It runs the gamut," Reedy said.
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I can't help it... - 2010-11-05 16:09:30
Does anyone know if he got his winkey back in in his pants before he ended up face down in the parking lot?
sorry... couldn't resist.
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Dave K - Arnold, MD - Karma: Excellent
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To John Frenaye - 2010-11-04 21:33:06
John, in reference to your original first post ... a second degree assault is just that ... 2nd degree. Yes police officers dont witness many murders but that charge would actually be homicide (and whatever degree it comes with). They are two completely different charges .. you cannot compare apples to oranges. They are fruit but they are not the same.
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Tim Copperbottom - Dunkirk, md - Karma: Excellent
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Arther - 2010-11-04 21:24:31
You need to brush up on your Maryland law. An officer cannot make an arrest on a simple 2nd degree misdemeanor assault unless he/she witnesses it or it is a domestic/family issue. Plain and simple. Not sure where you bartended but if it was in Maryland and an arrest was made for 2nd degree assault (and it wasnt girlfrend/boyfriend, etc) then those officers bent the law a tad. Its a gray line that some may walk but most officers are trained to exchange information and then the victim can go to the commissioners office and make the charges themselves.
So as much as a conspiracy cover up story you would like to make this, the reality is the officers handled the situation correctly and it made no difference if it was a construction worker, a lawyer, a barber, or a police officer ... it was the proper procedures based upon the way Maryland judicial system is set up.
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Tim Copperbottom - Dunkirk, md - Karma: Excellent
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Comment removed by HometownAnnapolis staff. - 2010-11-04 02:42:56
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Knocked out - 2010-11-03 13:28:54
I guess if your drunk you can't bob and weave. Keep your winky under wraps.
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charles harrell - annapolis, md - Karma: Excellent
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Who punches someone.... - 2010-11-03 08:25:09
....for waving their winkey around? Unless someone is chasing me around the the bar with their wacker out, I dont think I would have done more than tell the doorman.
Its pretty obvious that the good Officer made a large mistake and over-reacted, and is probably making up the part where the man exposed himself. If a police officer is off duty and gets into as fight while drinking at a bar, the punishment should be the exact same as if I were in the same scuff.
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William H - annapolis, md - Karma: Excellent
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More To It. - 2010-11-02 14:23:09
I don't care what anybody says if an intoxicated bar patron tries to re-enter a bar and an off duty police officer clearly identifies himself no doorman alive is going to tell a police officer on or off duty what to do and contrary to what people believe off duty police officers can make arrests because it's happened.
My guess is that the intoxicated individual probably threw a couple of punches at Thornley and he reacted.
For the Record I've only been to Stan and Joes once and that place is like the Acme on main street so theres never a dull moment when it gets crowded.
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Steve Gundersen - Annapolis, Md - Karma: Terrible
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Harry - 2010-11-02 09:35:33
you are correct, this sounds like a very weird story. Sounds like there is a ton more to this story, I looked at Md Judiciary to see if maybe this officer was the overzealous type and oddly enough he has no arrests listed under his name, which seems a bit odd to me. It was a few nights before Halloween maybe the victim had a costume that went over the top. This sounds personal to me. Really would like to hear what really went on here.
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Pat Magnum - Arnold, MD - Karma: Neutral
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Harry - 2010-11-02 08:46:57
You make it sound as if this is a regular occurance at Stan & Joe's. Not the case at all.
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chris fox - annapolis, MD - Karma: Terrible
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Not arrested - 2010-11-01 19:35:32
Maybe I can clear up what the Major did not say, in most jurisdictions a police officer cannot simply "take into custody" "arrest" a person for committing a misdemeanor offense unless it is committed in the officers presence. That is why the victim has the responsibility to go to the Police and press the charges against the guy who hit him, then with a proper warrant in hand the police can make the arrest and the court will then decide the outcome of the case, in most incidents like this the victim never comes forward and the incident is over, but with the suspect being a police officer, he now faces a catch 22 situation that most suspects DON"T face. He can be punished by an adminastrative hearing, with the punishment being up to and including termination....and that can happen even without any charges being formally filed against the officer!!!
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mike johnston - , - Karma: Neutral
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Sammy - 2010-11-01 18:07:52
Easy boy, calm down. I'm just saying whenever someone was punched and it was witnessed, they went to jail and were charged. End of story. Now since it happens to be an off-duty officer, he's not charged. HHMMMMMM
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Arthur G - Riva, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Comment disabled due to community reporting. - 2010-11-01 17:42:27
Why is this comment hidden?
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Blows at Stan & Joe's - 2010-11-01 17:25:45
This a strange story.. actually sound like a joke. So.. it's a Saturday night, a 43 year old guy walks into a bar...with his ma... and exposes himself? He's escorted out by a another patron? Where's mom? Maybe he went back in for her. What's the punch line? Stan and Joe's place to go for Saturday show.
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harry trampolini - severna park, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Martin - 2010-11-01 17:03:37
There were witnesses to the off-duty officer punching him but not the exposing part. That's why I can't understand why he was not charged, regardless of the exposing. You can't punch someone and not be charged...well I guess you can if your an off-duty police officer.
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Arthur G - Riva, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Was the officer drunk? - 2010-11-01 16:48:57
"In an interview with police, Thornley said the man walked into the bar and exposed himself. Thornley said he escorted the man out of the bar. Minutes later, the 43-year-old man tried to enter the bar again.
According to the doorman, Thornley confronted and yelled at the victim at the entrance. The doorman tried to thwart Thornley, but he got a punch in anyway."
A supposed drunk gets thrown out and tries to re-enter the bar and no one sees Thornley yelling at the guy and throwing a punch? So the doorman didn't see anything? Or he doesn't want to create problems for police?
Seems like the only thing not observed is this supposed exposure.
Was the off-duty office tested for public tox?
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Martin Hoagland - Gambrills, MD - Karma: Excellent
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BS - 2010-11-01 12:22:09
The officer should have been arrested. There is absolutely no doubt a normal joe(sober) would be arrested. The fact that it was not witnessed means nothing.
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Arthur G - Riva, MD - Karma: Excellent
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What's up ? - 2010-11-01 11:59:26
There seems to be alot of officers of the law caught up in bar fights lately... What's up with this ??
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Jen Rhoades - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Good
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@Jerry - 2010-11-01 11:52:23
I tend to agree with you and I will defer to you on the definition of a first degree assault. However, one has to look at the extent of the injuries and the circumstances.
"At 10:38 p.m. police were called to Stan and Joe's Saloon, where they found an unconscious man lying on the street."
This is not some assclown getting pushy in a line. There is a non responsive subject in the street as a result of a punch (punches?) thrown by an identified assailant.
Did the victim say--oh it's ok we were just fooling around?
The actions of the police may indeed have been right on the money. But, with the recent news of all of these police "coverups" (not specific to any department) that one progressive leader might institute a policy where officer involved incidents are investigated a bit more thoroughly or perhaps by a neutral third party.
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John Frenaye - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral
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Assault - 2010-11-01 11:16:03
In the years I bartended it was very cut and dry. If an assault took place, or there was evidence of one, someone got arrested. Period.
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Arthur G - Riva, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Jorge & JJ - 2010-10-31 22:40:41
Jorge, I don't disagree with you but my guess they are arrested on charges the officers actually witnessed such as disorderly conduct, obstruction, failure to obey, public intoxication etc. They still can not charge for a second degree assault they did not witness.
JJ, then the charges can be amended provided the case has not been adjudicated. Also, for most misdemeanors, the police or a citizen have a year and a day to file charges. All the more reason not to charge a minor second degree assault, have it go through the courts with a verdict, then have the victim die or be shown to suffer a serious impairment. Generally speaking you can not charge someone again for the same crime or incident.
I wasn't there and will not comment on this specific incident. However, if the cop did punch the guy in the manner stated in the story I hope the victim files charges and sues for his medical bills. I hope the officer is charged departmentally as well.
My GUESS is when APD arrived the officer was calm, cooperative, and responsive to the instructions and commands of the officers. Hence, no other charges to be arrested for as I mentioned to Jorge.
Hey, at least the officer didn't produce his service weapon. Hopefully he followed the rules and left it at home if he was going to be drinking.
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Jerry Enslow - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Soo.... - 2010-10-31 20:18:16
So what happens when the victim suffers 'issues' later? Requiring long-term medical attention? I'm a big fan of the police, but I have seen MANY people arrested for just that behavior. Something doesn't smell right when the off-duty officer was the only one to see the alleged exposure. Hopefully this guy sues the cop, as there was clearly staff of the bar on hand to deal with this type of situation.
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JJ Thomas - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Legal standard - 2010-10-31 16:53:01
I was employed throughout my college years in many different positions in bars & restaurants. I have seen plenty of people arrested and taken away in handcuffs when they punched somebody in a situation like this. No matter what the legal standards, if this were your average Joe, I have a feeling the guy would have been taken to jail even if charges would be dropped or reduced later.
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Jorge Garcia - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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To John - 2010-10-31 14:30:46
First degree assault is a felony and basically requires the use of a weapon or an egregious amount of unreasonable force. With a felony police may arrest regardless if they were present. A single punch to a victim is a second degree assault and is a misdemeanor. Unless it is a one of ten or so of the "specified misdemeanors", which it is not, police can not arrest for it unless they actually witness it. The victim is free to go to the District Court commissioner and complete an application for charges. If the commissioner finds probable cause that a crime has been committed, a charging document will be issued.
Let's try not to scream "police cover up - police cover up!" when that is clearly not the case. This situation appears to have been handled like any of the other hundreds of assault calls police receive in any given month. It's not like they hurried the officer out the back door and said, "oops, we couldn't find him or identify him."
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Jerry Enslow - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Excellent
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Huh? - 2010-10-31 12:27:38
Do I have this right? An off duty PG cop sees something in a crowded bar that no one else sees. He punches a guy resulting in him being unconscious in the street and transported to shock-trauma in Baltimore for his injuries.
But because the police did not witness the crime they let him go? Why is this a misdemeanor and not a felony? This seems like a first degree assault to me. Police witness very few murders, yet they charge the people responsible.
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John Frenaye - Annapolis, MD - Karma: Neutral
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