R.I. Alderman Brooks arrested for altercation...again
Rock Island 1st Ward Ald. Terry Michael Alan Brooks won't be charged following an arrest early Friday morning in connection with a domestic battery.
Ald. Brooks, 44, of 1115 8th St., was arrested by Rock Island police after an incident that occurred about 11:30 p.m. Thursday in the 1500 block of 11th Street.
Sgt. Roy Melton, of the Rock Island police, said Ald. Brooks got into a confrontation with a family member -- a 39-year-old female. He said there was enough probable cause at the time for Ald. Brooks to be arrested.
He wouldn't elaborate on the details of the incident.
The alderman was taken to the Rock Island County Jail about 1 a.m. Friday. He was held over night, and was released Friday afternoon after making his initial appearance in court.
No one from the Rock Island County State's Attorney's office would explain Friday why Ald. Brooks was not charged.
It was the third time in eight years Ald. Brooks was arrested in connection with domestic battery.
He was charged with misdemeanor counts of domestic battery in 2000 and 1997.
In the 2000 case, Ald. Brooks and Dameion F. Watkins of Rock Island were each arrested and charged for an altercation they had in the 1200 block of 12th Street.
The misdemeanor charges against both Ms. Watkins and Ald. Brooks were later dismissed.
The misdemeanor charge in the 1997 case was filed after an incident in which Ald. Brooks was accused of striking his then 15-year-old stepdaughter. He was found innocent at trial.
posted by The Inside Dope @ 4/15/2005
2 comments
2 Comments:
RepublicanJoe, your comments are interesting and you're welcome here. But being one of those touchy-feely Dems, I differ with your assessment of Ald. Brooks a bit.
I think a large part of why politics is so reviled by the public and why it's gone so far away from it's purpose is due to the fact that people do indeed expect politicians to be saints. It's ridiculous and flies in the face of reality.
No one is that flawless and pure as the driven snow, especially politicians, yet we all have made it a knee-jerk reaction to scream "AHA!" every time we find out that a politician used the wrong fork at dinner.
No one can bear that sort of scrutiny without some fault being revealed. And since those stories are all the press and the politicians themselves pursue (against their opponents), then no one should be surprised when the public has such a dim view of politicians. (case in point; Boland/Jacobs)
Just imagine if every single insurance agent were followed around and their every word and deed was pounced on. People might hate insurance agents worse than they already do.
My point is that Ald. Brooks, as anyone, deserves the benefit of the doubt on these matters, he is human, after all, and because we don't know the circumstances. Who knows? If we were in similar circumstances, maybe we'd have wanted to do the same thing or worse.
It does show that he tends to deal with problems by putting his hands on people, which isn't admirable, but falls short of making him unfit for office.
There ya go Rawk. That's democracy. Everyone should make their own judgment, and make it be known at the ballot box.
Perhaps if enough people feel Brooks is too rough around the edges, then he won't be in office next time around.
Post a Comment
<< Home