A Multnomah County sheriff’s deputy punched a man he believed was having an affair with his wife, breaking the man’s nose, leading the sheriff’s office to put the deputy on paid leave for more than a year before ultimately suspending him for 10 days for his actions.
Deputy Mark Farmer’s suspension came nearly six months after his insurance agreed to pay the alleged victim, Cody Johnson, $28,000 to settle the case. Criminal charges were dropped following the agreement.
Farmer insisted that he didn’t provoke the fight with Johnson and repeatedly denied wrongdoing, a transcript of his 150-minute internal-affairs interview shows. The sheriff’s office nevertheless concluded that he had “taken full responsibility.” An internal-affairs inspector sided with his claim of self-defense, a conclusion that was later overturned…