Officer deserves due process, mayor says

Mayor Dorn: May be 'some bad apples in the department'

From left, Rev. Norman Johnson, L.A. Urban League Director John Mack and Inglewood Mayor Roosevelt Dorn speak at a news conference Friday.

INGLEWOOD, California (CNN) -- The mayor of Inglewood on Saturday urged due process in the case of Donovan Jackson, the teen who was treated roughly by police in a videotaped arrest last week.

Mayor Roosevelt Dorn said that despite his personal opinion about the police treatment, Jeremy Morse -- the police officer at the center of controversy in the case -- has rights which must be respected.

"We must see that due process is done," Dorn said after a Saturday morning meeting with U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-California, and community leaders. "Due process has to be done in regard to the youngster and his father, but due process also has to be done in regard to the officer."

Earlier in the week, Dorn said there was "nothing that could have occurred prior to the videotape being turned on that would justify" police treating the teen in such a fashion. But Dorn said Saturday that was only his personal opinion, and he believes the law must be followed.

CNN NewsPass VIDEO CNN's Connie Chung talks to the lawyer for the police officer accused of beating an Inglewood, California teenager (July 12) Play video CNN's Charles Feldman examines the plight of Mitchell Crooks, the man who videotaped Inglewood police roughing up teenager Donovan Jackson (July 12) Play video   GALLERY Caught on tape    RESOURCES • Read the complaint: Jackson v. CIty of Inglewood (FindLaw) (PDF) • CNN Access: Supervisor should have been at beating scene  • Transcript: Officer relieved of duty

Dorn met with community leaders and local clergy Friday to outline their vision of reforming the Inglewood Police Department, six days after Jackson's arrest.

The arrest of the teenager and his father, Coby Chavis, captured on videotape by an amateur photographer, has sparked public outcry about the conduct of police involved.

Authorities said the beating occurred after Inglewood police and Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies pulled behind the car driven by Chavis at a convenience store where he was pumping gas. They noticed Chavis had expired license plates and later discovered his driver's license was suspended.

But according to Chavis' attorney, officers questioned Chavis at the gas station for no reason, and later began to beat Jackson and choke him with a chain while the youth was leaning over the trunk of a patrol car. Father and son have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit.

Amateur video shot by Mitchell Crooks shows Morse pick up Jackson, slam him onto the trunk of a patrol car and later hit him in the face while Jackson's hands are handcuffed behind his back. Morse's attorney said the teen deserved to be punched because he grabbed the officer's crotch. (Full story)

Morse has been suspended with pay pending investigation of the arrest.

Dorn indicated that other previously closed cases could be reopened for further investigation of possible wrongdoing by law enforcement officials. He did not elaborate on when those cases might be reopened, or how many might be examined more closely.

Mayor: Police misconduct 'will not be tolerated'

Martin Luther King III addresses protesters outside Inglewood police headquarters Friday.

He expressed his "greatest confidence" in the Inglewood Police Department. But he added there may be "some bad apples in the department," and said, "what I observed on that videotape cannot and will not be tolerated in the city of Inglewood."

The case has sparked extensive protest in Inglewood, a Los Angeles suburb. The Rev. Norman Johnson, executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, said many observers question whether "this is an isolated case."

Jackson's supporters have called for charges to be dropped against the teenager and his father; for criminal charges brought against police; and an independent special prosecutor hired to handle similar crimes.

Meanwhile, Crooks was in jail near Sacramento on 1999 charges unrelated to the Jackson case. Waters said she and other community leaders planned to follow his case and safeguard his rights because of his role in the Jackson arrest.

"This is a signal to all citizens to say, if you have the courage and if you witness something that's going on and you tape it or shoot it or video it, we appreciate you and we're going to stand behind you," she said.

Waters and others announced Saturday they have raised $3,000 to pay Crooks' legal bills and hope to raise another $7,000.

Crooks, 27, was sentenced to seven months in jail for stealing two VCRs from his mother's home and being involved in a hit-and-run accident while driving under the influence on his way to the theft, Placer County Sheriff Edward Bonner said.

Crooks was arrested Thursday in Los Angeles. His attorney, Dean Masserman, said Crooks faces a pending court appearance in Placer County Superior Court next week.

-- CNN Correspondent Charles Feldman contributed to this report.