Margate, officers dismissed from lawsuit

Nov, 04-2009 12:55 pm

MARGATE – The Margate Police Department, Detective Sgt. Christopher Koch and Detective Lawrence Dickerson have been removed as defendants from a lawsuit filed by a Ventnor resident more than a year ago against a number of law enforcement agencies.

On March 17, 2008 Koch, Dickerson and other law enforcement agents assisted with surveillance in connection with the execution of a narcotics search warrant issued by the Ventnor Police Department on the home of Daniel Lombardi, according to Koch.

The raid involved the Atlantic County Emergency Response Team, comprised of police officers from jurisdictions throughout Atlantic County.

Lombardi was arrested on charges of resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. His girlfriend at the time was at the home with her two minor children. According to Koch the girlfriend was injured during the course of the search.

Koch said Lombardi brought suit against all of the law enforcement agencies involved, including the Atlantic City Police Department, Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, Atlantic County Sheriff’s Office, Ventnor City, individual officers with the Ventnor Police Department and “10 masked men in black identified as John Doe.”

Lombardi asserts in his lawsuit that he was assaulted and that his rights were violated by the assault and the search warrant.

Koch said the lawsuit has been refiled in Federal U.S. District Court in Camden with the Margate Police Department, Koch and Dickerson removed from the list of defendants, as they were not present at the residence at time the search warrant was executed.

He said the dismissal with prejudice means that they can never be brought back as defendants in the suit.

The department and the two officers were represented by city litigation attorney Michael Barker of Linwood. Koch said the cost of defending against the suit was covered by the city’s insurance under the Joint Insurance Fund.



-- Suzanne Marino