Did Luke Prescott fall backward and rip the back of his head open on the metal door jam in a holding cell at the county jail in November 2008? Or did off-duty St. Paul police officer Scott Wendell smash Prescott's head into the cell wall, perhaps out of frustration because Prescott was too close to Wendell's family?
Those are the arguments Ramsey County District Judge Gary W. Bastian must weigh in Wendell's trial by judge, which wrapped up Tuesday after closing arguments.
Bastian said he hopes to render a verdict on charges of third-degree assault by Monday.
If Wendell is found guilty of either a felony or gross misdemeanor, he could lose his job. He is on unpaid leave from the force.
The incident in dispute began Nov. 2, 2008, when St. Paul police pulled over a vehicle on the city's West Side for "suspicious activity," according to the charges. One of the passengers, Prescott, now 29, had an outstanding warrant out of Chisago County and was arrested. Another passenger, Samantha Perry, was Wendell's stepdaughter.
One of the officers called Wendell, who was off-duty. Wendell told the officer to take Perry, then 17, to police headquarters, where he would pick her up. When Wendell got to the jail, he visited briefly with Perry in the juvenile unit, then went to Prescott's cell on the adult side. Officer Matthew Onnen was there, adjusting Prescott's handcuffs.
Wendell, 46, of Columbus, testified that he wanted to look into Prescott's eyes and tell him to "stay the [expletive] away from my family."
Prosecutor Elizabeth Cutter said in her closing argument that Wendell grabbed Prescott and pushed him into the concrete wall. Onnen watched until that point, then turned away. Onnen returned when he heard screaming and found Prescott lying in a pool of blood. Prescott suffered a concussion and a cut to his head that took 12 staples to close.
