BELLEVILLE – Police reports indicate that a Smithton man they were dispatched to encounter made gun sounds with a cell phone, resisted an officer who approached him alone, and hid his hands until a crew of cops opened him up.
Spencer Schmidt, 30, is now suing first responders claiming they used excessive force during his May 19 arrest.
An allegation in Schmidt’s Aug. 4 lawsuit that sheriff’s deputy Scott Mohrmann punched him in the face multiple times, came straight from Mohrmann’s report.
Mohrmann hit Schmidt so hard he broke his hand, according to his report, but Schmidt kept resisting until officers used tasers.
Smithton officer Joe Agles wrote that he told a hospital employee what happened and Schmidt said, “You guys punched and tazed me?”
Attorney Jarrod Beasley of Belleville filed Schmidt's suit on Aug. 4, against Agles, Mohrmann, Freeburg officer Tyler Howes, and deputy Terry Marquardt.
Schmidt also sued Smithton, Freeburg, St. Clair County, and sheriff Rick Watson.
Schmidt, who will turn 31 on Sept. 6, lives with parents Eric and Tina Schmidt.
On May 19, he wore a cast on a foot and he walked with crutches.
At 8:33 a.m., his mother called 911.
“Male is agitated breaking everything in the house,” the dispatcher’s report states. “Poss under the influence of something. He threw two pizza pans last night.”
The dispatcher reached Agles at Smithton’s village park.
According to the dispatcher’s report, he knew from previous encounters that Schmidt used methamphetamine and would go into random fits of rage.
Agles couldn’t respond because someone had blocked his patrol car in the park’s parking lot, so he asked Freeburg and Millstadt to respond.
Freeburg sent Howes, who heard as he drove that Schmidt locked the garage and might have a weapon.
According to Howes’ report he entered the house, met the parents, and noted a laceration bleeding on Eric’s hand.
He wrote that he could hear Schmidt screaming from the garage that he had a .22 long rifle and would kill anyone who entered and himself.
Howes wrote that he told Eric and Tina he’d wait for backup.
He wrote that Freeburg chief Michael Schutzenhofer arrived.
Schutzenhofer wrote in his report that he advised Howes to go back inside, talk with Schmidt, and keep him calm.
“Several other officers were arriving on scene and a plan of attack was being planned out,” Schutzenhofer wrote.
Howes wrote that he could “hear the sound of a gun racking. Spencer asked me several times if that noise scared me.”
He wrote that Schmidt became emotional, cried, and informed him that he did not have a gun.
He wrote that he asked if he could enter and Schmidt said, “Yes, but only you.”
He wrote that he drew his patrol weapon and asked Schmidt if he had weapons.
He wrote that Schmidt said he had scissors on the table, and he asked Schmidt to move them to a safer location.
He wrote that Schmidt threw them on the ground, and he switched from his patrol weapon to a taser.
“Spencer was crying and said he just wanted to be left alone and smoke his marijuana,” he wrote.
He wrote that he removed his handcuffs and instructed Schmidt to place his hands behind his back.
He wrote that Schmidt said he wasn’t putting handcuffs on him and leaned toward the scissors.
“I grabbed Spencer by the sweatshirt he was wearing and wrestled him to the corner of the couch and wall,” he wrote.
“I mounted the back of Spencer while he was face down on the couch attempting to fight me off.”
He wrote that Schmidt knocked his handcuffs out of his hand.
He wrote that he placed Schmidt’s left hand behind his back and instructed him to give him his right hand.
“I struck Spencer in the side with my right fist in attempt to get his hand multiple times but was unable to gain access to his right hand,” he wrote.
At 8:57 a.m., the dispatcher wrote, “Going hands on.”
Schutzenhofer wrote, “I heard three pops which sounded like a gun...I ran into the residence and down the stairs into the garage.”
He wrote that he grabbed Schmidt’s legs and held them so he wouldn’t kick anyone.
Agles wrote that he observed multiple officers attempting to pull Schmidt’s right arm out from underneath him.
“Spencer was laying on his stomach in a semi-fetal position on the couch with his right hand clinched in a fist under his body,” Agles wrote.
“I could not observe the full hand and believed he may be possessing a weapon.”
Marquardt wrote that they yelled at him to stop resisting and show his hands.
Mohrmann wrote that in fear of a firearm, “I delivered 3-4 closed fist strikes to the brachial plexus and immediately felt significant pain in my right hand.”
Agles wrote that he yelled taser, taser, taser, but couldn’t deploy it due to not having a clear target.
Marquardt wrote that he pulled out his taser and drive stunned Schmidt.
“After two five second cycles, I reached in and pulled out his left arm, where someone applied a handcuff,” he wrote.
“I again ordered him to remove his right arm, which he refused, so I issued one more five second drive stun.”
He wrote that Schmidt gave up.
At 9:08 a.m., the dispatcher wrote that he was in the squad car.
They kept him there until a Med-Star crew arrived and took him to Touchette Regional Hospital for evaluation, over his protest.
Mohrmann wrote that he drove to Belleville Memorial Hospital where it was determined by X-rays that he had a boxer’s fracture.
Howes wrote that he received scratches on his left hand and right arm.
Howes and Agles each wrote that one of the parents said Schmidt had an app on his cell phone that made gun sounds.
On the basis of these reports, St. Clair County State’s Attorney James Gomric filed felony charges of resisting and injuring Howes and Mohrmann.
He filed felony charges of aggravated battery against persons over 60, alleging Schmidt struck his parents with his crutches prior to the arrival of police.
For the same conduct he filed two misdemeanor charges of domestic battery.
On May 24, Circuit Judge John O’Gara set bond at $375,000.
On May 26, attorney and St. Clair County board member C.J. Baricevic of Belleville entered an appearance for Schmidt.
O’Gara reduced bond to $10,000 on June 11, “based on additional evidence and a substantial change in circumstances of arrest.”
A cousin posted $1,000 cash bond in five days.
On July 8, assistant state’s attorney Daniel Lewis asked Illinois State’s Attorneys’ Appellate Prosecutor for a special prosecutor.
“Potential for conflict due to civil case,” Lewis wrote.
Chief appellate prosecutor Patrick Delfino assigned David Rands, who moved to drop all charges on July 22. O’Gara granted it and the civil suit followed.
Rands also was appointed to prosecute a failure to reduce speed ticket issued to Lewis in Fairview Heights in 2019. The charge was dismissed.