THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2006

'Toothpick' Case Ends

By STEFAN SCHUMACHER

Journal Reporter

A former Des Plaines alderman and police sergeant was found not guilty of a battery charge against a Des Plaines police detective on Oct. 16 in connection with a toothpick-throwing incident that occurred in the downtown police station.

The trial stems from an incident that occured on May 19, 2005. Wayne Adams, the defendant in the case, was brought in for questioning after being spotted sitting in his car at a car dealer lot on Oakton and River roads. He was checking out a yellow sports car after business hours, around 11:15 p.m. While at the police station, Adams and Detective Jeffrey Rotkvich got into a dispute over a toothpick Adams had in this mouth, with Rotkvich demanding its removal. Adams then either flipped or tossed the toothpick at Rotkvich, hitting him in the right chest area.

Adams, who has been practicing law for 27 years and was a Des Plaines alderman for many years, is claiming to have been a victim of police brutality, with two civil cases pending, one against Rotkvich, and another against the officers who initially brought him in.

The police, though, contest that Adams was uncooperative throughout the process and that he maliciously flung the saliva-coated toothpick at the officer without provocation.

Adams defended himself in the criminal trial, and made the case that he was simply tossing the toothpick into Rotkvich's hand. In his closing statement, he told the jury that if they went to the police saying they'd been assaulted with a toothpick, nothing would happen.

Adams said he believes the only reason the trial was held at all was because of the civil cases he has pending.

"Nobody else can use the criminal justice system against you like this," Adams said this week. "The average person couldn't fight them like I have." This was the defense he used with the jury, and it worked, but Adams is still reeling from what happened.

"It was a nightmare. It was really ridiculous that this was a crime. A year in jail for the difference between four inches between his hand and his chest. I said I tossed it to him, he said I flipped it at him. Between tossing and flipping, we had 12 people on the jury, and three days in the courtroom."

The first of Adams' civil suits is pending in the Circuit Court of Cook County. It charges Rotkvich with holding Adams against his will in an interrogation room, forcefully squeezing his genital area, and using great force to push him down the hallway to the lockup area.

The second suit is pending in the U.S. District Court, and it charges Des Plaines police officers Oscar Szczerbinski, Richard Lalowski, and Carol Dougherty with violating Adams' civil rights by falsely arresting him in a painful manner.

Deputy Chief of the Detective Bureau of Investigations, Terry McAllister, said that any charges of police brutality are totally false.

McAllister said that when Adams was brought in, he was questioned only momentarily, and then taken to another holding area. This is when the dispute over the toothpick took place.

Adams described his interrogation as a scary incident that left him bruised on his arm and genital area. He said he was taken into a little room and turned over to the "goon squad." He said that Rotkvich, "dressed like a bum on the street," pushed his head against the wall, took all his personal belongings, including his jacket and shoes, and threw him in a cell.

It was on the way to the cell, according to Adams' lawsuit, that the toothpick became an issue, with Rotkvich out-of-control, yelling, "Give me the toothpick, give me the toothpick."

Why did Adams, who spent 13 years on the Des Plaines Police force, end up in the station to begin with?

Adams admits that, though he eventually tried to explain that he was merely looking at the cars, when he was stopped initially by Officer Szczerbrinski, he called him a "rookie," and was dismayed that he'd been questioned at all. Adams said had he been on patrol, he wouldn't have made such a stop.

McAllister said the patrolman was doing his job, and that it's not unusual behavior for someone looking to steal a car to hang around a dealership late at night.

"He would not answer the questions the officers were asking him," said McAllister. "If he would've acted in a reasonable manner, I'm sure the situation would've been resolved at the dealership."

The second officer to arrive on the scene was Dick Lalowski, who has recently been accused on verbally and physically abusing protesters at an abortion clinic, and whom Police Chief Jim Prandini wants fired.

Adams said Lalowski pushed him against his car, and painfully handcuffed him, refusing to loosen the handcuffs even though Adams informed Lalowski of a metal plate he had in his wrist.

The third officer on the scene was Sgt. Carol Dougherty, who knew Adams and was familiar with his background. According to Adams, after telling her he was in pain, her response was, "Take him in."

"It's been a horrible strain since May of 2005," said Adams. "The stress level was horrible."

McAllister said, "I know these people who handled him, and I believe all the officers conducted themselves professionally."

As to the jury's not guilty verdict on the battery charge against Adams, McAllister said, "The jury has spoken, that's all I can say."

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