Sept. 18--Two St. Paul police officers who had been on paid leave are back at work, but not on patrol, as an internal affairs investigation continues into an arrest captured on video that shows one officer kicking a man.
Police Chief Thomas Smith put officer Jesse Zilge on administrative leave Aug. 29, the day the video was posted to YouTube. He took the same action against officer Matthew Gorans two days later, when additional, undisclosed information surfaced.
Effective Thursday, Sept. 13, Zilge was assigned to the police technology development unit and Gorans to the property room, police spokesman Howie Padilla said Monday. Both officers had been on patrol. They will be less likely to encounter the public in their new assignments.
Asked whether the moves signaled a change in the internal affairs investigation, Padilla said, "It's certainly not finished. I wouldn't read any more into it other than we have officers who are no longer on paid administrative leave. They are now being paid for their on-duty assignments."
The FBI previously said that it's reviewing the case for possible civil rights violations and that an investigation is under way, Special Agent Steven Warfield said Monday. In a review, the FBI looks at the basic facts of a case to determine whether it merits an investigation, he said.
On Aug. 28, police were looking for Eric Hightower, 30, of St. Paul in a domestic-violence case. Zilge is seen kicking Hightower in the video, which a friend of Hightower's
took and another uploaded to YouTube.
Hightower has said that he was coughing on the ground after Zilge sprayed him with a chemical irritant and that Zilge's kick connected with his chest and chin. The video also shows Zilge and another officer slamming Hightower into the hood of a squad car.
Police haven't said whether Gorans is seen in the video or what information led Smith to put him on leave and then change his assignment.
St. Paul Police Federation President Dave Titus said Monday of the video: "Use of force is never pretty; it just isn't." He said having the officers back to work benefits the police department and the city.
"We did not agree with the original administrative leave," Titus said. "It was a poor decision, most likely influenced by uninformed political pressures."
Mara H. Gottfried can be reached at 651-228-5262.
Copyright 2012 - Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
