Family seeks damages over altercation between trooper, children at Wendell home site

The allegations are part of a complaint Wilbert Lee Atkinson and Beth Harris filed with the North Carolina Industrial Commission last month against the state Department of Public Safety. The family is seeking unspecified damages, claiming the agency was negligent. The Industrial Commission handles tort claims against state agencies.

The family had bought a house being built in Wendell, and Xavier Atkinson and his older sister, Mahogany Atkinson, rode an all-terrain vehicle over to the construction site on Sept. 10 to check on the progress of construction. As they were leaving, a man began cursing at them about the ATV's roaring engine, according to the complaint.

The man, Sgt. Sean Bridges of the State Highway Patrol, wasn't in uniform and never identified himself as a law enforcement officer to the Atkinsons, according to the complaint. He refused to let the pair leave the area and accused Xavier Atkinson of trying to hit him with the ATV, the complaint states.

When Mahogany Atkinson tried to intervene, Bridges "slung her into a nearby ditch," pinned her down and told her she was being arrested for assaulting a law enforcement officer, the complaint states. When Xavier Atkinson tried to pull Bridges off his sister, the trooper's fiancée, whom Bridges had summoned to bring some handcuffs, hit the teen on the back of his head with Bridges' patrol-issued walkie-talkie, according to the complaint.

Xavier Atkinson then rode home on the ATV and told his mother what happened. When Harris went to the home site, Bridges pointed a gun at her and cursed at her, according to the complaint. Her daughter, who suffered an asthma attack and panic attacks during the encounter, was then taken into custody by the Johnston County Sheriff's Office, the complaint states.

"Anytime you have a law enforcement officer overstepping their bounds, that’s egregious," said Donald Huggins, the Atkinsons' attorney. "They cannot act with impunity, and we have to check them. There are checks and balances, and that’s what we’re asking for here."

A few days later, Bridges' supervisor, First Sgt. Derek Mobley, spoke to Harris and said he could head off any charges being filed against her daughter if she would agree not to sue Bridges and his fiancée over their actions, according to the complaint. Harris recorded the 15-minute meeting on her cellphone.

"The supervisor knew there was potential wrongdoing here," Huggins said. "He was familiar with this officer, this trooper, and how he had a tendency to behave, and he didn’t necessarily believe his subordinate’s story.

"But he was trying to do damage control and ultimately sweep it under the rug – the conduct – and to a certain extent, he did that kind of under duress and holding and dangling potential charges over my client’s head," Huggins added.

Johnston County District Attorney Susan Doyle said she had already informed Mobley that her office determined that Mahogany Atkinson should be charged with felony assault on a law enforcement officer and that Xavier Atkinson should be charged with misdemeanor assault on a law enforcement officer, according to a Sept. 12 email.

Bridges didn't commit any crimes during the incident, Doyle wrote in the email.

Charges were never filed against either Xavier or Mahogany Atkinson, and their mother eventually backed out of buying the house.

First Sgt. Michael Baker, a spokesman for the Highway Patrol, said it would be "premature" for the agency to comment on the complaint.

Bridges has worked for the patrol since May 1999, while Mobley, who was promoted to lieutenant last fall, has worked for the patrol since February 1997.