SEPTA clears officer, disciplines another in man's death

Four months after a Kensington man died in SEPTA police custody after violently struggling with an officer, the transit agency's internal affairs investigators have cleared the officer of any wrongdoing, but recommended discipline for the sergeant who failed to direct officers to the closest hospital and collect witness statements at the scene.

SEPTA Police Chief Thomas J. Nestel III said Monday that the officer stunned 24-year-old Omar Lopez 10 times with a Taser with little effect - likely because Lopez was high on PCP during the Oct. 26 encounter at the Market-Frankford Line's Huntingdon station.

Several bystanders watched as the officer and Lopez - who outweighed the officer by 34 pounds and had three inches on him - fought on the sidewalk for eight minutes, Nestel said. No one helped or called 911, and at least one person recorded the altercation on a smartphone. The struggle ended only after passing firefighters stopped and helped the officer subdue Lopez.

The Medical Examiner's Office ruled in January that the death was accidental, caused by a PCP overdose. Lopez died shortly after arriving at Aria Health-Frankford Campus, where he was taken after the confrontation.

Nestel declined to identify the officer involved, saying that someone recently threatened on Facebook to kill him. That person has been arrested, but Nestel said he had no immediate details on that arrest.

The incident began when the officer found Lopez inside the station just before 2 a.m. as he was closing it for the night, according to SEPTA's internal affairs report. The officer escorted Lopez outside, where Lopez allegedly began arguing with another man. When the officer intervened, Lopez began wrestling and biting him.

The officer radioed for help six times in six minutes, but failed to tell dispatchers his location, so they couldn't find him, Nestel said.

SEPTA changed several policies in the wake of Lopez's death, including requiring officers to notify dispatchers whenever they exit their patrol cars, and outfitting all SEPTA cars with GPS tracking.

During their struggle, the officer activated his Taser 10 times within two minutes, each jolt lasting one to five seconds, but Lopez "did not seem to feel the pain," according to the internal affairs report.

After the officer and firefighters had Lopez under control, they put him in a patrol car, where he sat - conscious and handcuffed - for just over 11 minutes before they drove him to Aria-Frankford, the investigators found. During the seven- to nine-minute ride, he had no visible signs of injury and complained of no problems, according to the report.

On arrival, however, Lopez was not breathing and had no pulse, according to the report. Doctors declared him dead at 2:54 a.m.

While investigators found no wrongdoing by the officer who used the Taser on Lopez, they recommended discipline for the sergeant who arrived after Lopez was taken into custody.

On the scene, the report said, he violated SEPTA policy by not having Lopez taken to the closest hospital. (Episcopal Hospital was about a half-mile away, while Aria-Frankford was 3.3 miles away.) The sergeant also violated policy by failing to get the identities and statements of witnesses, investigators found.

Nestel would not identify the sergeant, but said he was disciplined.

Lopez's girlfriend, Jessica Cruz, said shortly after his death that her boyfriend was a religious man who doted on his three children and liked to draw in his spare time. He worked as a cook at the bar across the street from the couple's apartment, but had taken time off in recent weeks to stay with their young daughter while Cruz went to work at a collection agency.

At the time of his death, Cruz said, Lopez was planning to start classes at a technical school and get into the HVAC industry.

Court records show Lopez was jailed in 2013 for drug possession and had another drug-dealing conviction that led to probation.

difilid@phillynews.com