Scott Alan Lanner,was booked into the county jail on suspicion of felony menacing and misdemeanor false imprisonment

Scott Alan Lanner, 46, was booked into the county jail on suspicion of felony menacing and misdemeanor false imprisonment, according to jail records.He is being held on $2,000 bond on each count and is due in court Monday, jail records show.
The Aug. 8 encounter occurred near Lanner's home in the 1800 block of Couch Place. According to an arrest affidavit, Lanner had just finished mowing his lawn when he decided to check on two men who were walking from house to house in brightly colored vests.He approached a parked car and told one of them, Patrick J. Wilson, that he must leave because he did not have a permit to inspect roofs. No permit is required in unincorporated El Paso County, authorities said.Wilson, of Claim Specialists International of Colorado Springs, wore a laminated identification card and said he presented Lanner with documents about his company and tried to explain that he was in the neighborhood legally when Lanner drew his weapon and ordered him to get out of the car. Wilson was handcuffed and searched.Lanner later said the documents appeared to be false and that Wilson ignored orders to put his hands up, which Wilson denied, the affidavit said.The marshal also said he was concerned about elderly neighbors because of recent home invasions, though sheriff's officials said none had been reported.Something about the men triggered his "policeman spidey sense," Lanner said, according to the affidavit."Lanner was not able to articulate any suspicious activity, reasonable suspicion or probable cause for a stop or drawing his weapon during that stop," Detective Cliff Porter with the El Paso County Sheriff's Office wrote in the affidavit.Porter noted that Wilson is black and that the second employee, who is white, was not searched or questioned."It just smacks of racism," said Glen Jessen, a co-owner of Claim Specialists International. "Patrick's a really good kid, and I don't see how something like this could happen to him."
El Paso County Sheriff's Office Bureau Chief Joe Breister said the stop did not appear to be a "black-white issue."Lanner told authorities he made a snap decision after Wilson turned away from him and dropped his hands out of view.The marshal approached the car because it was nearest to him, Breister said. The other man was down the street, walking toward the car.A prosecutor with the 4th Judicial District Attorneys Office opted to file charges after reviewing the sheriff's office investigation, Breister said.City marshals are employed by the Colorado Springs Police Department and serve warrants, provide security and perform other duties on behalf of Municipal Court.The marshals undergo the same training as patrol officers and may wear their service pistols while off-duty, said police Lt. Scott Whittington, who oversees the eight-person unit.Lanner, a police employee since 1995, was temporarily moved to a graffiti-removal unit after the department learned of the criminal investigation, Whittington said.
The marshal will be placed on unpaid administrative leave pending the outcome of the criminal case.

Posted in: Colorado Springs Police Department