A man kicked her dog, then her. Why’d it take so long for Independence to charge him? | Opinion

A dispute between neighbors over ownership of a dog should have never ended in violence. But it did.

Worse, the assault on Terri Golding, 51, captured on security video taken at the Heritage House apartment complex in Independence, was downplayed by authorities.

It wasn’t until I spoke with City Prosecutor Mitch Langford and made calls to Independence police did a criminal case move forward nearly three weeks after the incident.

Despite Golding showing officers footage from the incident the day after it occurred, it took authorities almost three weeks to issue a summons to 49-year-old Danny Thomas, Golding’s neighbor and former friend.

On Thursday, Thomas was cited for misdemeanor assault for kicking Golding in the back, according to Independence police. The delay in justice is unacceptable, Golding told me.

After reviewing video footage of the incident Golding recorded from a security monitor with her mobile phone and reading police reports filed in the case, I agree with her: Independence police and Prosecutor Langford dropped the ball here.

In a police report from April 10, officers wrote: “The officers watched video that shows Danny Thomas taking his wheelchair at full speed and coming up behind Terri cocking his leg back and intentionally striking Terri causing her to fall. She was advised to send the video to digital evidence and to set appointment with the prosecutor.”

Golding did what she was told. She showed me emails she sent to Independence Police’s digital evidence account that bounced back as blocked. She also said Langford refused to meet with her or pursue criminal charges against Thomas. Thomas told me Thursday that he uses a wheelchair because of a traumatic brain injury from 2000.

Video shows assault from wheelchair

The fact that Thomas intentionally kicked Golding in the back isn’t up for debate. In the same incident from April 7, Thomas made contact with a dog at the center of this dispute. On April 19, he was cited for animal abuse, according to a report filed by an Independence animal control officer.

The impact from the blow sent Golding crumbling to the pavement. She showed a responding officer with the Independence Police Department a 1-inch scuff mark on her knee, according to a police report.

But justice for Golding was hard to come by. She made numerous calls to Independence police pleading for criminal charges to be filed against Thomas for assaulting her. She left voice messages with Langford asking him to act. Her pleas were ignored.

It wasn’t until I started inquiring about the case did Independence police issue Thomas a citation April 25 for assault. Coincidence? I don’t think so. It shouldn’t take almost three weeks to investigate a crime caught on surveillance video and bring charges.

Victim disabled, wants felony count

Golding said she is disabled, adding she’s been diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder and spinal stenosis of both the neck and lower back. As a result, walking or standing for long periods of time is sometimes painful. Her condition worsened after she was struck by Thomas, she said.

The same day, Golding sought medical attention at an area hospital, according to medical documents she showed me.

Citing a Missouri statute that makes assault on a disabled person a felony, Golding wants law enforcement officials to pursue a more serious charge. They should.

“I’m a special victim,” Golding said. “He should be charged with a felony.”

This week, I asked Langford about the unusual delay.

Apparently, the prosecutor was not fond of the voice messages Golding left him. She threatened to file a complaint against him with the Missouri Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel if he didn’t pursue assault charges against Thomas, according to Langford .

“I don’t like bullies,” Langford told me in between court proceedings Tuesday at Independence Municipal Court. I was there to meet with Golding. Thomas’ court day for animal abuse is scheduled for July 23.

Langford continued: “She didn’t tell you that, did she? Did she tell you she apologized for the threats?”

When asked about the apology, Golding said: “I told him I apologized if he felt threatened that I would report him for not doing his job, but I’m not sorry.”

Well, then.

Man who kicked admits assault — sort of

In a phone interview conducted a few hours before he was charged with assault, Thomas admitted to me that he pushed Golding to the ground but denied kicking her.

“She stole my dog,” Thomas said. “And I went after her.”

Late last year, health issues wouldn’t allow Golding to properly care for the dog. She told officers that she gave Thomas the animal on a trial basis, according to a police report. On the day of the altercation, Golding became agitated at Thomas and threatened to take back the dog, a mixed breed named Ham, he said.

Later, Thomas saw Ham run past him and into the arms of Golding, who was waiting with a leash to retrieve the dog. She and Ham were walking away when Thomas nearly ran them over in his motorized wheelchair and kicked Golding, an act he must have forgotten he committed.

“It looks like I kicked her but I didn’t,” Thomas said.

Um, sir, the video shows otherwise. Thomas clearly kicked Golding. Officers were shown the footage.

In an email sent Thursday, a spokeswoman for the Independence Police Department said the delay was because of the time it took for investigators to retrieve video from Heritage House, an apartment complex for seniors and disabled people in Independence.

But officers had already filed a police report a day after the assault attesting to what they viewed. Shouldn’t their report account for something?

Langford should have put his personal feelings aside and filed charges sooner. Golding and her dog, Ham, were victims of violence — she has indisputable video proof of the attack. But Langford steadily refused to press charges against Golding’s attacker until this week.

The well-being of an animal is not more important than the safety of a human being. In Independence, top law enforcement officials there don’t seem to think so.

Langford slow-walked the matter and tried shifting the blame to Golding’s behavior. As a victim, she deserved better.