Herald exclusive: Chester firefighters sue sheriff, claim false arrest in roadside scuffle

Two Chester County volunteer firefighters arrested for assault in 2014 after an argument-turned-scuffle with Sheriff Alex Underwood and top deputies have sued the sheriff, claiming false arrest, malicious prosecution – and that they were the ones assaulted by police.

Andy Martin and Tommy Martin claim in lawsuits filed Monday in Chester County civil court that Underwood and his top deputies “assaulted and battered” the Martins at the scene of a Feb. 14, 2014, truck crash. The brothers wanted an icy S.C. 9 closed after a truck crashed.

State troopers and sheriff’s deputies at the scene refused, which upset the Martins. They began to argue, and that escalated into a physical altercation that was captured by a Highway Patrol dashcam video.

Underwood said Tuesday he had not seen the lawsuits and declined to comment further on the Martins’ claims that they were victims, not aggressors. Underwood has said the Martins broke the law by physically attacking his deputies.

Tommy Martin declined comment Tuesday, directing questions to his lawyer, Dan D’Agostino of York. Efforts to reach Andy Martin were unsuccessful.

D’Agostino said the lawsuits was filed because the Martins were wrongfully arrested and wrongfully incarcerated.

“These two men...have spent many years of their lives serving the people of their community,” he said. “They never should have been arrested or put in jail.”

In February, after a State Law Enforcement Division investigation, the state Attorney General’s Office declined to prosecute the cases, saying there was not enough evidence for convictions.

The day after the scuffle, Andy Martin, chief of the West Chester Fire Department, was charged with assault and disorderly conduct. Tommy Martin was charged with assault.

The confrontation came after Andy Martin, who was the incident commander at the scene, made comments over an emergency radio about the 2016 election, in which Underwood will face re-election. After hearing Martin’s remarks, Underwood, his chief deputy and another commander went to the scene.

The Martins’ arrests were “done with implied malice,” the lawsuits claim, alleging there was no probable cause for arrest. The Attorney General’s Office said in February that probable cause for the arrests “may have existed.”

The lawsuits allege the Martins were damaged physically, emotionally and financially and suffered “pain, suffering and emotional distress.” It claims they were the victims of false imprisonment, because they had to spend a night in jail because no magistrate was on duty to set bond. Both were freed on bond the following morning.

The Martins’ arrests infuriated the county’s dozen other fire chiefs, who rallied behind them and against Underwood – to the point of hiring a high-powered lawyer to try to prove that a fire chief is in charge at a wreck scene, not the police.

John Agee, who was president of the South Carolina State Association of Fire Chiefs when the incident occurred, said Tuesday that Chester County firefighters and fire chiefs continue to back the Martins.

“We stood behind the Martins then, and we stand behind them now,” Agee said Tuesday. “We hope this comes out to the satisfaction of the Martins.”

The Martins each have been volunteers at the West Chester Volunteer Fire Department for about 40 years. Tommy Martin is a former member of the Chester County Council and the Chester County school board. They were never formally disciplined and remain volunteers at their fire department.

This story was originally published July 7, 2015 at 5:09 PM with the headline "Herald exclusive: Chester firefighters sue sheriff, claim false arrest in roadside scuffle."