David Clifford Minneapolis SWAT Officer Charged With Assault Date of Birth: 01.01.1965 Country: USA

1. Minneapolis SWAT Officer Charged with Assault
2. Arrest and Charges
3. Victim's Condition
4. Discrepancies in Victim's Name and Age
5. Surveillance Footage
6. Clifford's Account
7. Investigation and Clifford's Record

Minneapolis SWAT Officer Charged with Assault

A Minneapolis police sergeant and SWAT officer, angered by what he felt was an excessively loud cell phone conversation, is accused of assaulting a man who suffered serious head injuries after he was punched.

Arrest and Charges

Minneapolis police sergeant David Clifford, a senior lieutenant and commander of the city's SWAT unit, was booked into the Anoka County Jail on Monday. He is charged with third-degree assault and is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Tuesday.

Victim's Condition

Anoka County Sheriff Paul Sommer said the incident "shocks the conscience" because it is unexpected for a police officer to behave in such a manner. Sommer also identified the victim as Brian Keith Vanderlee, 34, of Ramsey, Minnesota, in Anoka County. The hospital has not released information on Vanderlee's condition, but Sommer said as of Monday morning, he remained on life support and had undergone two brain surgeries.

Discrepancies in Victim's Name and Age

Steve Yaeger of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported Monday evening that Mr. Vanderlee is a client relations manager in the newspaper's advertising sales division and spelled his last name as Vander Lee. According to the newspaper, he is 43 years old. The discrepancy in his name and exact age remain unclear, but Yaeger added that the thoughts and prayers of those at the Star Tribune are with Vander Lee's family.

Surveillance Footage

According to Sheriff Sommer, surveillance video from Saturday night showed that Clifford and Vanderlee were sitting at neighboring tables on the patio of Tanner's Station, a restaurant in Andover, a suburb of Minneapolis. Vanderlee was allegedly talking loudly on his cell phone with a friend when Clifford got up and walked over to him. The video shows that Clifford said something to Vanderlee, who continued talking on the phone. As Vanderlee started to stand up, Clifford punched him once in the head. Vanderlee fell backward, possibly hitting his head on concrete. There was no fighting, just an assault by the 47-year-old Clifford, who then left the scene and turned himself in to police on Sunday afternoon.

Clifford's Account

According to the criminal complaint, Clifford told police that he had been at the bar with his wife and others, discussing the upcoming National Night Out event, and that he had been offended by some of the language Vanderlee was using and asked him to stop. Clifford said Vanderlee stopped using the profanity for a short period—5-10 minutes—and then started again. Clifford then approached Vanderlee, and when Vanderlee stood up and cursed at him, Clifford punched him, believing Vanderlee was going to start a fight. However, he admitted that he did not ask employees at the restaurant for help in mediating the dispute or request that they move his group to a different table. Furthermore, restaurant staff members, according to the complaint, did not hear Vanderlee using profanity and had not received any complaints from other patrons about it.

Investigation and Clifford's Record

An internal investigation is underway, said Minneapolis police spokesman Bill Palmer. According to Palmer, Clifford joined the Minneapolis police in 1993 and has been a SWAT officer since the mid-1990s. He has no disciplinary record, has received two medals of valor, and has other commendations. He was promoted to sergeant in 2008. Clifford has also served as a United Nations police officer in Kosovo.