FORT SMITH — The jury trial for a western Arkansas sheriff accused of using “unreasonable force” against detainees on three occasions has been reset.
A motion for continuance of the trial for Franklin County Sheriff Anthony Boen, 49, was granted in U.S. District Court on Thursday, according to court documents. His jury trial will be at 9 a.m. June 22 in Fort Smith before U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes III. It was originally set for Feb. 3.
“The court finds that the ends of justice served by taking such action outweigh the best interest of the public and the defendant in a speedy trial, because otherwise counsel for the defendant would be denied the reasonable time necessary for effective preparation, taking into account the exercise of due diligence,” a text only order signed by Holmes states.
Franklin County sheriff since 2011, Boen pleaded not guilty to three federal charges of deprivation of rights under color of law during his arraignment Dec. 17. He was released on an unsecured bond of $5,000 with conditions, including not entering the premises of the Sheriff’s Office and having to relinquish all duties as sheriff except for signing employee checks, among others, according to the order setting conditions of release.
Boen’s motion for continuance, which was filed Thursday and submitted by his attorney, Russell A. Wood, stated Boen requested a postponement of at least 90 days. It stated Boen received about 5,000 pages of discovery and needs additional time to both properly review the discovery and address the “numerous legal issues” it raises. There are also several witnesses for the defense whose locations aren’t known, with a private investigator’s assistance being required to find them.
“It is anticipated that at least one of the individuals resides out of state and will require defense counsel to make arrangments to interview that individual once he is located,” the motion stated. “It is anticipated that the witnesses, whose locations are currently unknown, will be significant defense witnesses in this matter.”
The motion stated the U.S. Attorney has no objection to the matter being continued.
One of the charges against Boen in an indictment filed Nov. 20 stated Boen and a deputy took an arrestee identified as J.P. to the Franklin County jai Sept. 14, 2017.
“Boen punched J.P. multiple times in the head and body while J.P. was handcuffed and shackled in the back of a patrol car and was not resisting,” according to the indictment.
Another charge stated Boen ordered a person identified as B.E. to the Sheriff’s Office on Nov. 21, 2018. He “pushed B.E. onto the floor, and grabbed B.E.’s hair or beard,” according to the indictment.
The indictment stated on Dec. 3, 2018, “Boen struck Z.G. multiple times in the head while Z.G. was shackled to a bench in the Franklin County Jail and was not resisting.”
All three offenses resulted in “bodily injury” to the detainees involved, according to the indictment.
The office of Duane Kees, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, has said Boen could face a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 should he be convicted.