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Lawsuit against police dismissed
Source:
Cranberry Eagle
Written by:
Jared Stonesifer
Published:
February 10, 2010
CRANBERRY TWP — A civil suit that alleged township police lied under oath and falsified documents was dismissed Thursday because the statute of limitations expired.
Phil Royer, 60, of Cranberry sought $8,000 in damages from the township stemming from his arrest on Aug. 9, 2006. Township police arrested Royer then and accused him of storing his 90-year-old dead mother's body in a freezer in an attempt to collect her Social Security checks.
Royer accused police of entering his house without permission and without a warrant when they arrested him more than three years ago. He also said police questioned him without an attorney present and they destroyed property in his house without compensation.
Royer, who represented himself in the civil suit, also said police wrote fraudulent reports when they said he let them into his home and that he never confessed to any crime. He sought damages related to "the cost, time, embarrassment and exposure to the press because of these untruthful statements."
Tom Merrick, the attorney for the township, argued that Royer's claims have been dismissed previously by the Butler County Court and the statute of limitations had expired before Royer filed the suit in December.
The statute of limitations requires claims be filed no more than two years to the day of the arrest.
"Every single one of these issues was raised before and they were decided against him," Merrick said.
District Judge Dave Kovach dismissed the charges based solely on the fact that it had been more than two years since Royer's arrest.
Royer wasn't satisfied with the ruling but realized his legal options are limited.
"I can't help the justice system is the way it is, and I can only try to work within it," he said. "To say there's no case for my action seems like more injustice to me."
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