| By Aaron Crear
A
Somerville resident who previously filed a $10 million lawsuit against
the city for alleged police brutality was arrested again recently. 22
year old Ralph "Ralf" Romelus, of 10 Winter Hill Circle, was arrested
on September 18 for driving with a suspended license. Romelus was
driving on Tennyson Street when officers who had responded nearby for a
separate incident ran a routine license plate query. The license plate
search came back clean, however, the operator's license returned as
Suspended. The vehicle was then stopped and officers confirmed the
operator, Ralf Romelus, had indeed been driving with a suspended
license. Upon searching the suspect and his vehicle officers recovered
a loaded semi-automatic handgun which had been reported stolen, a
shotgun which had its serial number filed off and 2 bags of what is
alleged to have been marijuana according to the police report. Romelus,
who did not have a license to carry firearms was charged with numerous
offenses including illegal possession of a firearm, defacing firearm
serial number, possession of a class D substance and receiving stolen
property over $250.
Romelus, a former Marine, was awarded
$225,000 by the city in 2009, although under the settlement the city
admitted no wrongdoing. The payout was the result of an alleged beating
that Romelus received in July 2006 by Somerville Police Officers James
Slattery, Sean Sylvester and Kevin Shackelford. Romelus needed 18
staples to repair damage allegedly inflicted by police. The event began
when officers questioned Romelus about his involvement in a possible
drug deal while working at the Good Time Emporium. The officers
involved arrested Romelus and charged him with Assault and Battery on a
police officer, for allegedly striking Officer Sylvester, as well as
resisting arrest. It is unclear what, if any, disciplinary measures
were taken against the officers. The three officers involved in the
incident were listed as active members of the department according to
the city's proposed 2010 fiscal budget. Romelus, whose attorney claimed
the attack was racially motivated, was acquitted of the charges during
a jury trial in July 2007.
When asked if the arresting officers
took any special precautions given the department's past history with
the suspect Deputy Chief Paul Upton replied, "The arrest and search of
his person and the inventory of his vehicle, was conducted according to
proper police procedure and the same is required to be done for every
similarly-situated person. He was booked and released in the usual
manner."
Neither Romelus nor his attorney could be reached for
comment. He will be back in court on December 1, 2009 for a pre-trial
hearing.
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