Chicago cops ask court to reverse conviction

[September 12, 2008]  DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- About 40 Chicago police officers rode a bus from Chicago to Des Moines in hopes of persuading an appeals court to free a fellow police officer serving a prison sentence.

Officer Michael Mette was sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted on an assault charge. The charge was the result of an October 2005 fight in which Mette punched Dubuque student Jake Gothard, who suffered a broken nose, cheek and jaw.

The case prompted an outcry in Chicago, where Cook County State's Attorney Richard Devine and Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis and others wrote to Iowa Gov. Chet Culver, imploring him to pardon Mette.

John Kupczyk, a police department commander, said it was the camaraderie of the department that brought the officers to Des Moines on Thursday to ask the Court of Appeals to reverse the conviction and dismiss the charge.

"We come as a band of brothers," Kupczyk said. "We're seeking justice."

Another officer wore a black T-shirt that quoted Mette: "Just because I am a police officer doesn't mean I'm supposed to take a beating." The T-shirt also read "Injustice in Iowa."

Mette's attorney Mark McCormick told the three-panel court that there is no argument that Mette hit Gothard. But McCormick argued that the evidence was insufficient to support Mette's conviction.

Mette was in Dubuque to celebrate his brother's 25th birthday when he encountered Gothard, who followed him from a party and pushed him three times before Mette punched him. McCormick argued the assault was justified because Mette was acting in self-defense.

The district court judge who convicted Mette ruled that the officer had options other than hitting Gothard, including walking away, trying to talk to Gothard or calling the police.

"Is it logical to think in the heat of the moment that Mr. Mette should stop and talk to Mr. Gothard?" McCormick asked. "That is out of the realm of reality."

The attorney for the state, Linda Hines, argued that Mette could have avoided the fight but instead chose to hit Gothard.

"The court found he had other options," she said. "He was pushed. He hit back. He hit so hard that Mr. Gothard was knocked unconscious and fell backward.

"The defendant could have used alternative methods -- the state did disprove the argument of self defense," Hines said.

Mette's mother Patricia attended Thursday's hearing. She said it was nice to see the show of support from her son's fellow officers.

"There's nothing any of us can do. They believe in Michael, and the only way they could show their support was to travel here today," she said.

Patricia Mette said her son calls her once a week and that she and her husband, who was a Chicago police officer for 32 years, travel to see their son once a month.

"There's nothing I can do, so I'm there for him when he needs me," she said. "We take it one day at a time and hope for the best."

[Associated Press; By MICHAEL J. CRUMB]

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