A witness and another Cincinnati police officer might prove key to the investigation of two veteran officers accused of kidnapping a man Saturday and leaving him in Mount Airy Forest.

        Another man watched as Courtney Evans was patted down and handcuffed in the front yard of a South Cumminsville home, according to Ken Lawson, Mr. Evans' lawyer. He said Tuesday the witness saw an officer take Mr. Evans' cell phone and throw it in a mailbox.

Courtney Evans was taken by officers from this house on Borden Street in South Cumminsville, a witness says. (Ernest Coleman photo) | ZOOM |

        That witness then followed the two uniformed officers in the cruiser as they drove up Interstate 74 toward the park, Mr. Lawson said.

        Shortly after Officer Robert Litman and Spec. Mike Mercer allegedly left Mr. Evans in the park at about 2:30 a.m. Saturday, the third officer came along, saw the North Fairmount man and wondered what he was doing there after dark, Mr. Lawson said.

        That officer could still smell the chemical irritant the other policemen reportedly sprayed in Mr. Evans' face, the lawyer said, and could see his eyes were watery.

        The Police Department did not release any more information about the incident Tuesday, except to say that its investigation continued.

        Officer Litman and Spec. Mercer were relieved of their police powers and guns Monday, and reassigned to desk duty during the investigation.

        The FBI is monitoring the Cincinnati investigation and could open a civil-rights case to look into whether Mr. Evans' constitutional right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure was violated.

        But spokesman Ed Boldt said federal authorities generally don't act unless they are dissatisfied with the outcome of the local review. Chief Tom Streicher notified the FBI because of the seriousness of the allegations.

        An Internal Investigation Section sergeant, Deborah Bauer, filled out the incident report, listing the crime as kidnapping, a second-degree felony.

        Investigators found the cell phone where Mr. Evans told them the officer put it, Mr. Lawson said.

        He would not comment on reports that his client took a lie-detector test.

        Officials have not named the third officer, but Mr. Lawson credited him with doing the right thing, particularly because of Mr. Evans' criminal history. He has drug convictions and spent most of 2001 in prison for selling crack.

        “Had the (third) officer not done the responsible thing, I'm not sure what would have happened,” the lawyer said. “I mean, come on — who's going to believe (Mr. Evans)?”

        The 22-year-old Mr. Evans has gotten several tickets for pedestrian violations in the same block of Borden Street from which he said he was forcibly removed Saturday.

        No one in a group of men standing outside the same house Tuesday afternoon said they knew Mr. Evans.

        The Fraternal Order of Police does not represent officers in criminal proceedings. But Vice President Keith Fangman cautioned against coming to any conclusions prematurely.

        “Give the investigation a chance,” Mr. Fangman said. “Like any citizens, these officers are presumed innocent.”

        The alleged incident happened just hours after Attorney General John Ashcroft visited Cincinnati to sign an agreement outlining changes to be made by Cincinnati police. Many of those recommendations were designed to track and limit use of chemical irritant and other kinds of force.

        Neither Spec. Mercer nor Officer Litman could be reached for comment Tuesday.

        The witness who followed the cruiser was scheduled to speak Tuesday with police investigators, Mr. Lawson said.

        The witness said Mr. Evans was wondering, as he sat in the back seat of the cruiser, what he was being taken in for. The officers rifled through paperwork, he said, making him think there might be a warrant for his arrest.

        “To me, it just sounds like they didn't have anything else to do,” Mr. Lawson said. “It's like they're mad because he wasn't committing a crime.”

Tuesday's story: 2 police officers under scrutiny in alleged kidnap

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