State must take responsibility
Saturday, March 29th, 2008
By Staff
A state Industrial Commissioner has a chance to begin righting a 23-year old wrong. Deputy Commissioner Wanda Taylor has heard arguments about the severe beating a former state trooper gave Richard Barfield in 1985. Then-trooper Geary Blackwood beat Mr. Barfield outside a Fayetteville store so severely that doctors had to remove part of his skull and replace it with a plate, according to news reports.
A jury found in Mr. Barfield's favor, awarding him $500,000, but Mr. Barfield never collected a penny because the trooper, dismissed from the State Highway Patrol, had no money. And a federal court ruled that a federal judge could not force the state to pay Mr. Barfield.
A few years ago enough state legislators familiar with the case concluded that the state ought to be held responsible in such cases, even if the trooper acted beyond his responsibility. They approved a law allowing Mr. Barfield to file a claim for up to $100,000.
Sen. Tony Rand said it's a matter of fairness. "It's our responsibility," he told the News & Observer, "and we ought to take care of it." Indeed it should. Then-Trooper Blackwood was not authorized to beat anyone, but with that badge on his chest, he nonetheless was exercising excessive power of the state. That has to have consequences. (more…)
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