Dec. 12--A Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer accused of assaulting another man who allegedly rear-ended the officer's mother last Wednesday in Matthews is due in court today.
Meanwhile, the man who says he was slammed to the ground by the off-duty officer after the collision on Sardis Road said Sunday he believes the officer should lose his job and spend time behind bars.
Richard Samuel McVicker, 38, is charged with driving while impaired after the fender-bender in Matthews. He said he'll have his day in court for that charge, but he believes Officer David Estele Jones' actions after the wreck around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday were inappropriate.
Jones is scheduled for a hearing this afternoon in Mecklenburg County District Court.
McVicker said he plans to meet with a lawyer to discuss potential legal action against Jones, who could not be reached for comment.
McVicker is charged with rear-ending a car driven by Jones' 63-year-old mother about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday on Sardis Road near N.C. 51, while she was stopped at a red light. She wasn't injured. McVicker said he had visited a friend in Matthews and had "a couple beers" before trying to drive home. He told the Observer he didn't know what his blood-alcohol level was, but he was ultimately charged with DWI.
McVicker said that, after the wreck, he got out of his car to ask if the woman was OK.
"Her first words were, 'Give me your license.' Her second words were, 'My son's a cop,' " McVicker said.
The woman took his license, rolled up her window and wouldn't talk to him, McVicker said. He says he began rapping on the window.
At some point, the woman called her son, police said.
McVicker said he never saw the officer.
"He didn't announce himself or say anything. He just hurled me facedown on the concrete and handcuffed me in the mud while I'm bleeding all over the place," McVicker said.
His injuries are extensive -- two black eyes, including one that was swollen shut, a nasty scratch on his nose and headaches that lingered on Sunday, he said.
"All my weight landed on my face on the concrete. I've still got a giant goose egg. I think I'm going back to the doctor tomorrow because of the swelling. I do not normally look like that."
Jones, 37, turned himself in to authorities Friday afternoon, according to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police. He's been a police officer since 2000, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police spokesman, and is assigned to the South division.
Since he was hired by CMPD, Jones has been suspended three times. The most recent suspension was in April 2010, when he was suspended for six weeks, according to police records, which don't indicate why he was suspended.
Jones' attorney, George Laughrun, said last week that the officer was rushing to aid his mother, who had called him for help.
Laughrun said Jones' mother got McVicker's keys to keep him from leaving the scene. Then McVicker began beating on her car window, trying to get the keys back, Laughrun said, and the woman called her son, who lives nearby.
When he arrived, Jones pushed McVicker away from his mother's vehicle and McVicker fell and hit his head, Laughrun said.
In addition to the criminal investigation, Jones has been placed on administrative leave with pay while the department investigates.
Wootson: 704-358-5046
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