Jury deliberates in trial of former APD officer

Apr. 26—Jurors this week repeatedly viewed graphic video of a disabled man struggling to purchase a bicycle, then dragged out of a Target store by Albuquerque police officers.

Jurors now must decide whether former police officer Kenneth Skeens is guilty of two felonies for what prosecutors describe as an illegal arrest of a man trying to make a legal purchase in 2022.

Skeens, 29, was charged in July 2023 with false imprisonment and perjury, each a fourth-degree felony, and filing a false police report, a misdemeanor.

Attorneys made closing arguments Friday on the fifth day of Skeens' trial before 2nd Judicial District Judge Britt Baca-Miller. Jurors will resume deliberations on Monday.

Prosecutors told jurors on Friday that Skeens pressured Target's loss prevention officer for authorization to remove 53-year-old Matthew McManus from the store and cite him for criminal trespass.

Skeens' attorney responded that the police officer had been told by store employees that McManus was attempting to shoplift, obligating Skeens to remove the man from the store.

Skeens was fired from the Albuquerque Police Department in February 2023 following an investigation into the Aug. 19, 2022, incident at the store on Coors and Paseo del Norte NW.

Assistant Attorney General John Duran told jurors in closing arguments Friday that Skeens asked 11 times before getting an answer, "OK, you can make contact," from the loss-prevention officer.

"You can't take somebody's freedom based on, 'OK, you can make contact,'" Duran told jurors. "You can't do that, as a person with that kind of authority that Skeens had as a cop, with a badge and a gun."

A key issue in the trial is whether Skeens believed he had authorization from Target's loss-prevention officer to remove McManus from the store and issue him a criminal trespass notice.

A trespass notice is essentially a warning that prohibits someone from returning to a business or face arrest. An officer must have permission from the store's manager or representative to issue a trespass notice.

Skeens testified in his defense Friday that he believed Target's loss-prevention officer authorized him to make contact with McManus. Skeens also testified that he had reason to believe that McManus was attempting to shoplift a bicycle from Target.

The loss-prevention officer "indicated to me that he did not have enough money to pay for the bicycle" and that McManus may have concealed merchandise inside a black box in a shopping cart, Skeens told jurors.

"That would literally be reasonable suspicion for shoplifting," he said.

Skeens also said that retail theft prevention was a major focus for APD at that time and that he frequently checked in with West Side businesses in an effort to prevent theft.

Skeens' attorney, John D'Amato, said police officers are obligated to remove anyone a store owner wants removed and are authorized to issue the person a criminal trespass notice.

"If a proprietor tells a police officer to 'criminally trespass' that person — I want him removed — that is probable cause. No crime committed," D'Amato said Friday in closing arguments.

"Whether the guy is in a wheelchair, whether there is a disability that clearly is identifiable, that's irrelevant to an officer who is asked to remove somebody," he said.

D'Amato dismissed the argument by prosecutors that McManus hadn't committed a crime and that Skeens had no cause to remove the man from the store.

"It's true that Mr. McManus didn't commit a crime," D'Amato told jurors. "You don't need a crime to get trespassed."

D'Amato acknowledged that the video images of McManus being dragged from the store appear cruel and make Skeens appear unsympathetic.

"You may not like Mr. Skeens," he told jurors. "You may not like the fact that he acted too quickly in approaching and putting hands on Mr. McManus. That's not a crime."

But prosecutors contend that Skeens lacked the authority to physically seize McManus, who they said was clearly trying to pay for the bicycle, and drag him out of the store.

Skeens "had no authority to restrain Mr. McManus," Assistant Attorney General Johnna Walker said in closing statements.

"Mr. McManus was minding his own business that day and (Skeens) crossed a line," she said. "Freedom is important and it's important to get things right."

Skeens approached McManus and said, "Albuquerque police, you are not free to leave," according to the video.

Skeens put hands on McManus no more than two minutes after he made contact with him at the self-checkout register, she said.

Walker told jurors that Skeens had intended to arrest McManus and pressured the loss-prevention officer for permission to issue a criminal trespass citation.

Skeens "knew he was going to arrest Mr. McManus," she said. "Mr. McManus just didn't know that."

McManus testified this week that he had suffered a stroke that resulted in disabilities. McManus took a bus to the West Side Target to buy a bicycle because he didn't have a car.

"He wanted to buy a blue Huffy," she said. "He had not committed any crime. He was just a customer who was taking a little bit long. There was no shoplifting."

Store employees estimated that McManus remained at the self-checkout register for about 20 minutes and had refused offers from employees to help him make the purchase.

McManus apparently believed that he had been ejected from the store by Target security officers. After McManus was removed from the store and forced to sit on a curb, he called 911 and told a dispatcher that store security officers were "beating me up."

McManus refused to tell officers his name, telling them it was "none of your business," the on-body video shows.

Prosecutors allege Skeens made false statements in a criminal complaint filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court charging McManus with resisting arrest and refusal to provide identity. McManus was never prosecuted for those charges.

McManus was transported to an Albuquerque hospital for an examination, witnesses testified. A police officer later drove him to a location near Zuni and Wyoming SE.

Lt. Raymond Del Greco, an APD commander who performed a use-of-force investigation of the incident, testified this week that Skeens' removal of McManus was a violation of APD policy.

McManus was attempting to make a legal purchase and showed no indication that he was attempting to steal from Target, Del Greco said.

"He was trying to by a bike," he said of McManus.

Del Greco estimated, based on video images, that McManus had at least $293 in hand to purchase the bicycle.

"If there is cash out, there is a clear indication that the individual is trying to pay for that item," he said.