The Mexican illegal immigrant who was allegedly assaulted by a Salt Lake police officer almost didn't get to see the conclusion of his trial, which was expected to end sometime Friday.
As former officer Lane Heaps was on the witness stand Thursday giving his version of his alleged assault on Jorge Torres-Vences, an INS agent showed up to deport Torres-Vences."It's been determined he is an illegal alien in this country," said Steven Branch, INS officer in charge. "At this point he is not in custody, and he'll be processed for a deportation hearing. We could have taken him into custody and kept him in custody, but the agent, in talking to the attorney, determined he should be allowed to remain free."
The timing, however, was something Torres-Vences' attorney, Richard Smith, found questionable. INS could have deported Torres-Vences when he was arrested for two misdemeanor DUIs before the March 14 encounter ever happened, Smith said.
"During the testimony of Lane Heaps, this guy shows up," Smith said. "I clearly think that it's motivated by a spirit of retaliation. I would not be at all surprised if this agent was notified by friends of Lane Heaps."
Branch said he was not aware how INS agents learned Torres-Vences was an illegal immigrant.
"In no way are we retaliating or anything like that," Branch said. "Any person that comes to our knowledge that is here illegally, we are required to take action."
Branch said INS only had two to three agents at the time Torres-Vences was arrested for DUI and did not have the manpower to pursue every case.
Torres-Vences has lived in the United States for eight years and has two children in Mexico and two stepchildren in Utah.
Smith said he will file an appeal to stop Torres-Vences' deportation.
Inside the courtroom this week, testimony differed as to what happened during Heaps' encounter with Torres-Vences.
Heaps, who is charged with class-A misdemeanor assault, testified Torres-Vences appeared intoxicated, swore at him several times in Spanish and ignored an order to stop fidgeting as he lay with his hands handcuffed behind his back.
"I approached him because I was going to lift him up and see what he was doing," Heaps said. "He pulled his legs back, spun and kicked me on top of the knee."
Heaps said he moved forward to try and pin Torres-Vences' legs but lost his balance.
"As I was coming down I felt like I was losing control, and I took one strike to the side of his face," Heaps said. "I hit him, I thought that was absolutely necessary."
Jurors will decide Friday whether the force Heaps used was necessary and reasonable. If found guilty, Heaps could face up to one year in prison.
Wednesday, an 11-year-old girl riding in the area with her grandmother the night of the confrontation said she saw two policemen kicking a man who was trying to cover his face with his hands. The kicking lasted several minutes, the girl said.
"Both police were kicking him, first one then the other," she said.
The girl, however, said she could not identify the officers.
Heaps and officer Walter Dobrowolski, who initially pulled Torres-Vences over for running three red lights, both testified they never kicked Torres-Vences.
Sulaiman Haji, 18, watched the exchange from his front porch and testified Wednesday he saw a Hispanic man, who appeared drunk, handcuffed and sitting on the ground. The Hispanic man kicked the police officer in the leg, Haji said.
One police officer then kicked Torres-Vences and punched him once or twice, Haji said.