Extortion, kidnapping not the case, attorney says

Kim Smith

Wednesday, April 17, 2002 | 9:51 a.m.

A defense attorney for a former North Las Vegas police officer on trial for kidnapping and extortion told jurors Tuesday that two fellow cops set up his client.

During opening statements in the William Brooks trial, attorney Robert Lucherini told jurors a twisted tale of police corruption, vengeance and misperceptions.

Brooks, 44, is accused of accosting 36-year-old Lynn Malloy in the parking lot of a Rainbow Boulevard Home Depot on Feb. 20, 2000.

Chief Deputy District Attorney David Wall said Brooks was moonlighting as an unlicensed private investigator when he allegedly assaulted Malloy, believing she was the key to collecting a $30,000 drug debt owed to one of his clients.

Wall told jurors that Malloy was attacked from behind as she stepped into her Porsche and spent the next several minutes fending off a man at least 100 pounds heavier than her.

Malloy was struck on the head and face and was nearly smothered by her attacker before she was able to get out of the car and fall to the ground, Wall said.

"As her attacker stands over her, he pulls a gun out of his waistband, possibly his pocket, and says 'Get in the car or I'll kill you,' " Wall said.

When witnesses began to approach the car, however, Brooks jumped into his vehicle and left, Wall said. He was arrested after Malloy and a witness provided police with his license plate number.

Despite dozens of bruises on Malloy's body, Wall said, Brooks told police he barely touched her.

Brooks told the police that "at most" he gave Malloy "some taps on the head" with an open palm to calm her down, Wall said.

Lucherini said Brooks was hoping to find the man behind some shady investment deals when he received an anonymous tip that the wife of the man would be waiting for him in a black Porsche at The Home Depot.

The tip, Lucherini said, probably came from former North Las Vegas Officers Mike Thomas and John Armstrong, who have a "great deal of hatred" for Brooks and the North Las Vegas Police Association.

Lucherini said the men hated Brooks because he cleared Officer Dave Galyen of attempting to run Thomas down with a car in 1999. At the time, Galyen was president of the police union.

During the investigation, Brooks also filed misdemeanor battery charges against Thomas over an alleged attack. Thomas was found not guilty.

Thomas and Armstrong have both been fired twice from the police department, the last time in 1998, and resent the police union for not assisting them in their battle to get their jobs back, Lucherini said.

Lucherini said he intends to call a memory expert to testify how traumatic events can change one's perception. For example, he said, Brooks' gun fell out of his pocket during the incident and yet Malloy mistakenly believed he pulled it out and pointed it at her.

Brooks knows how to use Mace and a stun gun and he knows martial arts, Lucherini said. He would have done a much better job of kidnapping Malloy if that were his intent.

"If his intent was to take her away, he could have flashed his badge and asked her to come with him. He could have disabled her," Lucherini said.