Man Claims False Imprisonment by Medford Police

A local man claims Medford police held him for three days on two occasions on a warrant that had been recalled.

James Twohig, 31, of Medford is suing the city for $500,000, claiming it violated his 14th amendment rights when Medford Police held him from June 25 to 28, 2010 and again on April 22 to 25 this year on a warrant out of Norfolk County that had been recalled, according to a lawsuit filed by his attorney, Laurence Cohen, last week.

On the first occasion, the police department was faxed a copy of a court docket on June 26 that showed the warrant was recalled, but continued to hold Twohig for another two days, according to the lawsuit.

Cohen, an attorney based in Connecticut, filed a lawsuit in Somerville District Court against the city in April 2011. On April 22, days after the city was served the summons, Twohig was arrested again on the same warrant and held for three days, Cohen said when reached by phone last week.

"What makes this particularly egregious is the second arrest occurred after the city was issued a summons on the state lawsuit," Cohen said. "They clearly should have known the warrant was recalled."

The warrant was related to probation conditions, but was recalled when Twohig's probation terms changed, Cohen said.

Cohen filed a second lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Boston Nov. 21., which claims the city of Medford violated Twohig's 14th amendment rights, falsely arrested and falsely imprisoned him. It seeks $500,000 in damages. Neither Twohig nor Cohen ever brought the allegations to another law enforcement body - such at the U.S. Attorney or District Attorney - for investigation, Cohen said.

In a phone interview last week, City Solicitor Mark Rumley said the city had not been served with the federal lawsuit so he would not comment on the case. The case filed in Somerville District Court was dismissed in July because a judge ruled state district court was not the proper jurisdiction, Rumley said.

Medford Police Chief Leo Sacco did not return a call for comment.

The first arrest occurred when Twohig's mother called police to her home on June 25, 2010 seeking help with Twohig because he was exhibiting symptoms of bipolar disorder, according to the lawsuit. He was arrested on a warrant out of Norfolk County and brought to Medford Police headquarters.

Shortly after, Twohig’s mother brought police documentation she believed proved his probation conditions were changed and the warrant had been recalled, according to the lawsuit.

About 10 p.m., Ilya Ablavsky, Twohig's attorney at the time, told police they could find the docket sheet in the state's online trial court database that showed the warrant was recalled, the lawsuit said, but Twohig remained in custody.

Ablavsky faxed police a copy of the docket the next morning, but he continued to be held another two days, the lawsuit said.

"There was overwhelming proof that the warrant had been recalled," Cohen wrote. "Thus, there was no reason to keep Mr. Twohig in custody."

At the time of his arrest, Twohig was on five psychiatric medications and was suicidal, but was kept in a holding cell at the Medford Police Department rather than transferred to a psychiatric facility for evaluation, Cohen wrote.

On April 22, Twohig's mother again called police seeking help. He was again arrested on the warrant that had been recalled, Cohen wrote, and held for three days in a holding cell.

Cohen was Twohig's attorney at the time of the second arrest. He spoke to police shortly after, explaining the warrant had been recalled and information on it could be found in the state trial court online database.

"It seemed they believed me, but they weren't sure where to go from there," Cohen said.

The lawsuit includes two claims that police violated Twohig's 14th amendment rights by holding him on an invalid warrant, two claims they arrested him falsely and two claims he was imprisoned falsely. It seeks compensatory damages totaling $50,000 and $450,000 in punitive damages.

Cohen said he had not decided whether he would seek a bench trial - held before a judge - or a jury trial.