ALFRED – A police report prepared by the York County Sheriff’s Office deputy who arrested a Waterboro landowner appears to shed additional light on what took place on Jan. 30, 2018, that led to Caleb Gaul filing a civil complaint against the county.

Gaul was arrested following a disagreement over the parking of a school bus on his property. The civil complaint seeks an admission that Gaul’s arrest was unreasonable, that the arrest and a subsequent strip search at York County Jail was in excess of the county’s authority and in violation of the Maine constitution, and an unspecified amount of monetary damages.

The civil complaint was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine on Gaul’s behalf  at York County Superior Court in Alfred on Wednesday.

The police report was filed by Deputy Joshua Morneau, who responded to the incident on Jan. 30, 2018. The report was provided to the newspaper by the ALCU of Maine at the request of a reporter.

Morneau is named in the suit along with York County government, York County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff William L. King Jr., and two unidentified York County Jail officers.

Morneau wrote that when he arrived at the scene at the base of Gold Mine Trail around 7:45 a.m. that January day, there was a school bus backed onto the roadway and a blue Toyota Tacoma, registered to Gaul, parked in front of the bus, perpendicular, so the bus could not get around it.

In his report, Morneau wrote that Gaul told him that he confronted the bus driver about parking on his private road, “and that the bus driver was rude to him and failed to leave the property upon being asked.”

“In response, Caleb moved his Toyota Tacoma and parked it in front of the bus and took his keys out of the ignition so the bus could not leave,”  Morneau further stated. “I asked Caleb why he blockaded the bus and what end result he was hoping for. Caleb told me he was not going to move his vehicle until the bus driver apologized to him.”

Morneau interviewed the bus driver and the bus monitor. The driver told Morneau he had parked on Gold Mine Trail as he had several times before, and that the property owner confronted him and asked if he had permission to do so. The driver responded he had been parking there for a long time.

“Both the driver and the bus monitor  stated the guy was very agitated,” wrote Morneau. “They reported he did not threaten them, but he made them nervous.”

The bus driver told Morneau he could not leave because he was concerned he would slide into the Toyota Tacoma if he attempted to do so.

Morneau asked the driver if he failed to leave the property as requested, and both he and the monitor responded that they didn’t believe Gaul gave them that order, that he had only asked if they had permission to be there.

“(The driver)  reported that when he observed Gaul leave on foot to walk up to his residence, he was fearful (he) would return with a weapon,” Morneau wrote.

“(I) determined I had probably cause to believe Caleb committed the Class D (misdemeanor) crime of obstruction of government administration, as Caleb intentionally interfered by physically parking his vehicle in front of the bus so the driver could not perform his official function of picking up students on his route,” Morneau wrote.

He wrote that he turned to Gaul and informed him he was under arrest, and  that Gaul then informed him he could not arrest him on his property.

Morneau wrote that he gave Gaul several verbal commands to turn around and submit to arrest.

“Caleb still refused and I had to physically turn him around and secure the handcuffs,” Morneau wrote. “Caleb yelled for his wife to record the arrest as he alleged I was roughing him up. Once handcuffed, I asked Caleb to walk to my patrol car, but he told me I was going to have to force him. I pulled him toward the car while he was still standing. The ice allowed him just to slide to my patrol car.”

Morneau alleged that Gaul continued to be uncooperative with the booking process once at York County Jail.

“Caleb stated he would not provide me with his address (for the summons) because I did not read him his Miranda Rights, Morneau wrote. “I explained his name, date of birth and address does not fall under the Miranda requirement.”

Morneau wrote that he got the address by calling Gaul’s wife. Gaul then initially refused to sign the summons, according to the police report, but after Morneau read him the legal warning at the bottom of the summons, he signed it – according to Morneau, to avoid an additional charge.

The suit claims Gaul was strip-searched in violation of a settlement agreement that requires jail employees to allow detainees whose charges do not involve a weapon, drugs or a violent felony to change into a jail uniform without a strip search. He was held for five hours, and then released on $360 bail and fees.

The charge was later dropped by the prosecutor, according to the ACLU of Maine.

The ACLU of Maine indicated the incident could have been handled through a summons, rather than an arrest.

“This arrest — which the officer knew would result in a multi-hour incarceration, humiliating strip search, and long-term employment consequences — was undertaken for no legitimate public interest and in violation of state statutory law.” ACLU of Maine attorneys Zachary Heiden and Emma Bond wrote in the civil suit. “Mr. Gaul posed no public safety or flight risk that could justify subjecting him to an invasive, humiliating, and costly custodial arrest. Any legitimate interest in charging Mr. Gaul could have been equally satisfied by issuing a summons for Mr. Gaul to appear in court.”

The suit claims Gaul, an audio and technical engineer, suffered adverse employment consequences, physical and psychological injury, damage to his reputation, and financial harm, noting that when he told his employer of his arrest, he was placed on employment probation for a year.

York County Sheriff William L. King Jr. on Wednesday declined comment.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 780-9016 or twells@journaltribune.com.

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