Suspect Accused of Knocking Minn. Officer from Moving Truck

A St. Paul man was charged Thursday with assaulting a police officer who fell from a moving truck into the street earlier this month.

Demone Gregory Ivory, 38, was charged by warrant in Ramsey County District Court with fourth-degree assault.

According to the criminal complaint, St. Paul officers responded to Case Avenue and Arcade Street in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood Sept. 2 on a report of a man harassing people.

Witnesses told police that Ivory asked a female for money and then chased her. A St. Paul police officer identified in the complaint as Officer Boon, approached Ivory, who began running north on Arcade. Another officer, identified in the complaint as Officer Morgan, pursued.

Ivory jumped into the bed of a white pickup truck that had pulled up, offering to help him escape, the complaint states.

Officer Morgan attempted to grab Ivory, who swung a fist and struck Morgan in the head. The truck was moving at the time and Morgan was caught, unable to get free as the truck picked up speed.

Morgan eventually fell from the side of the truck, hit the pavement and rolled several times. He suffered abrasions and extensive damage to his uniform and a bump on his head from the punch. The incident was captured on surveillance video.

On Sept. 4, officers saw a man wearing what appeared to be the same red outfit Ivory had been wearing earlier, the complaint states. Both officers identified him as the same person.

Ivory denied any involvement in the assault.

As of Thursday afternoon, Ivory was not in custody. According to the Ramsey County Jail, his hold expired Monday before officers were able to provide probable cause for him to be charged.

Ivory has an extensive criminal record dating back to 2002. Convictions include robbery, theft, assault, fleeing police, stealing cars, brawling, drug possession, damaging property and domestic assault.

It's not the first time he's assaulted a police officer.

In 2016 he bit the hand of an officer while being arrested for possessing drugs after harassing people on a Metro Transit bus in St. Paul. The charge was dropped in a plea deal.

Ivory was released March 20, 2017, by order of Ramsey County District Judge Nicole J. Starr with time served — 154 days — and was put on supervised release for two years.

In 2020 he was convicted of aggravated robbery for holding up a Metro PCS store on Dec. 29, 2019, in St. Paul. The employee, who believed Ivory had a gun in his coat, texted 911 "Help gun on me 825 Maryland hurry."

Police arrived, and when they went to arrest Ivory, he resisted violently, kicking an officer in the nose, causing it to bleed. He was charged then with assaulting a police officer, a charge which was dismissed as part of the plea deal.

Ivory was released Aug. 7, 2020, by order of Ramsey County District Judge Joy D. Bartscher with time served — 195 days — and a suspended sentence of 10 years (meaning he would serve those 10 years if he violated his supervised released conditions). That case has been reopened.

A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

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