Answer of Defendant, E.R. Hymon to Plaintiff's Interrogatories

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 
FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE 

WESTERN DIVISION

CLEAMTEE GARNER, father and 
next of kin of EDWARD EUGENE 
GARNER, a deceased minor.

Plaintiff,
VS.
MEMPHIS POLICE DEPARTMENT;
CITY OF MEMPHIS, Tennessee; 
WYETH CHANDLER, Mayor of 
Memphis; JAY W. HUBBARD, 
Director of Police of Memphis, 
and E. R. HYMON, Police Officer 
of the City of Memphis,

Defendan ts .

CIVIL ACTION 
No. C-75-145

ANSWER OF DEFENDANT, E. R. HYMON 
TO PLAINTIFF'S INTERROGATORIES

COMES NOW the Defendant, E. R. Hymon, pursuant to Rule 33, 
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and hereby answers those 
interrogatories propounded to him by the Plaintiff.

QUESTION:
1. What is your full name, badge or identification number, 

and present address?

ANSWER:
Elton Richard Hymon, Badge No. 1228, 901 Woodland, Memphis, 

Tennessee 38106.

QUESTION:
2. What was your occupation or the nature of your employ­

ment on or about October 2. 1974?

ANSWER:
Policeman.



3. With respect to your occupation or the nature of your 
employment on or about October 3, 1974, state:

a. The nature of your work and duties;
b. Any special area of assignment.

ANSWER:
a. To enforce the Ordinances of the City of Memphis 

and the Criminal Laws of the State of Tennessee;
b. Ward 128.

QUESTION:
4. Is your present occupation or the nature of your present 

employment the same as it was on or about October 3, 1974?

QUESTION:

ANSWER;
3tes,

QUESTION:
5.

State:
If the answer to interrogatory No. 4 is in the negative,

a. The name and address of your present employer;
b. The nature of your present work and duties?
c. The date upon which you joined the City of Memphis 

Police Department;
d. The date upon which you left the City of Memphis 

Police Department;
e. The reason for termination of your employment with 

the City of Memphis Police Department.

ANSWER:
Not applicable.

QUESTION:
6. What is your educational background?

ANSWER:
Crammer School and High School at Geeter High School,

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Memphis, Tennessee; College at Tennessee State University at 
Nashville, Tennessee, Bachelor of Science Degree with a Major in 
English.

QUESTION:
7. Have you had any military training?

ANSWER:
R.O.T.C. training in College, two years.

QUESTION:
8. If the answer to the previous interrogatoiry is in the 

affirmative, state:
a. The branch of the Armed Forces in which you served;
b. The duration of your service;
c. The area of your specialization while serving in the 

Armed Forces;
d. Whether you were instructed in the use of firearms 

while serving xn the Armed Forces.

AfJSWER:
Not Applicable as he did not actually serve in the Armed

Forces.

QUESTION:
9. Were you appointed, selected, or did you compete for the 

position you held on or about October 3, 1974?

ANSWER:
I competed in the sense that I had to take written tests, 

agility tests and under go a period of training to qualify as a 
police officer.

QUESTION:
10. What, if any, educational requirements are prerequisite 

to placem^ent as a police officer for the City of Memphis, Tennessee?

ANSWER:
Two years of college or be a veteran,

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53



11. At the time of your placemert as a police officer of 
the City of Memphis, did you satisfy the educational requirements 
prerequisite to such appointment?

QUESTION:

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
12. Is training or experience as a police officer a 

prerequisite to appointment as a police officer for the City of 
Memphis?

ANSWER:
No,

QUESTION:
13. If the answer to the previous interrogatory is in the 

affirmative, state the nature and duration of the training or 
experience that is sufficient to qualify one for such appointment?

ANSWER:
Not Applicable.

QUESTION:
14. Were you ever employed elsewhere as a police officer 

prior to your appointment as a police officer for the City of 
Memphis?

ANSWER:
No,

QUESTION:
15. Did you receive any special training for the position 

of police officer for the City of Memphis?

ANSWER:
Yes,

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16. Were you ever a defendant in any suit which charged 
you, individually or in your official capacity as a police officer 
with abuse of your lawful authority?

QUESTION:

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
17. If the answer to the previous interrogatory is in the 

affirmative, please give a complete detail of the facts and 
disposition of said case, including but not limited, to:

a. The designation of the court involved;
b. The date on which such proceedings were initiated;
c. The nature of the charges against you;
d. The nam.e of the complaint;
e. The outcome of the proceedings and the termination 

date of such proceedings.

ANSWER:
In the latter part of 1971 or the first part of 1972, while 

working as a treatment service counselor for the State of Tennessee 
at the Fort Pillow State Farm, Fort Pillow, Tennessee, I was sued 
by one of the residents, charging me, among others such as the 
Warden and Commissioner of Corrections, with punishing an individual, 
whose name I do not recall, twice for the same offense. I turned 
the pleadings over to the State Attorney and have not heard 
anything since about this proceeding. I was later told that the 
case was dismissed.

QUESTION:
18- Has any State or Federal Court ever issued a decree 

enjoining you from engaging in any conduct whatsoever within the 
last ten years?

ANSWER:
No.

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19. If the answer to the previous interrogatory is in the 
affirmative, state:

a. The designation, venue, and judge of the Court 
that issued each such decree;

b. The date that each such decree was entered;
c. The nature of any conduct within that period in 

which you were or are enjoined from engaging.

ANSWER:
Not Applicable.

QUESTION:
20. Have you ever been subjected to any internal adminis­

trative procedure designed to prevent, determine, or correct 
instances of abuse of the authority of police officers?

ANSWER:

QUESTION:

No .

QUESTION:
21. If the answer to interrogatory No. 20 is in the 

affirmative, please indicate the following information for each 
proceedings:

a. The nature of the police department disciplinary 
proceeding;

b. The date such proceedings were initiated;
c. The name of the complainant; and
d. The outcome of the police department disciplinary 

proceedings and the date on which they were 
concluded.

ANSWER:
Not Applicable.

QUESTION:
22. What were your scheduled hours of work as a police 

officer on or about October 3, 1974?

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ANSWER:
4:00 P.M. to 12:00 Midnight.

QUESTION:
23. Did you work the hours you were scheduled to work on 

or about October 3, 1974?

ANSWER:
Worked scheduled hours and overtime extending to 4:00 A.M. 

the following morning.

QUESTION:
24. If your answer to interrogatory No. 23 is in the 

affirmative, state:
a. The ?iature of your duties during that period, 

including but not limited to your geographic 
assignment and the hours of any shifts you worked 
during that period;

b T /.7 U  4 -  ^  ^  J_T_____________________  — JT  % M ________ l_  —
• M 1 A O . U  w  1. j - X  X  c i j -  O X  u i i t i  O X  u y  u x  n t i i u p i i x t j

Police Department would contain information with 
respect to your assignments on or about October 3, 
1974.

ANSWER:
a. The nature of my duties were as described herein­

above, to-wit: to enforce the Ordinances of the
City of Memphis, and to carry out those duties, 
some of the time is spent in patrolling the City 
in a police vehicle. My geographic boundaries 
were Evergreen on the east, Bellevue on the west, 
Jackson on the south, and Wolf River on the north. 
The hours of my shift during that period were as 
stated hereinabove,

b. The log sheet.

QUESTION:
25. Was your employer insured on or about October 3, 1974, 

against judgements of personal liability arising from your discharge

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of your official responsibilities as a Memphis police officer?

ANSWER:
I do not know.

QUESTION:
26. Were you insured on or about October 3, 1974, against 

judgments of personal liability arising from your discharge of 
your official responsibilities as a Memphis police officer?

ANSWER:
I do not know.

QUESTION:
27. If the answer to either of the immediate previous 

two interrogatories is in the affirmative, state, for each such 
policy of personal liability insurance:

a. The name and address of the insurer;
b. The name and address of the person or persons who 

pay the premiums;
c. The identification number of the policy;
d. The effective dates of the policy;
e. The amount of the policy;
f. The substance of any disclaimers of liability in 

the policy.

ANSWER:
Not Applicable.

QUESTION:
28. On or about October 3, 1974, did you have any contact 

with Edward Eugene Garner, deceased son of the plaintiff in this 
action?

ANSWER:
Yes.

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29. If the answer to interrogatory No. 28 is in the 
affirmative, would you indicate the nature of the contact with 
Edward Eugene Garner, including but not limited to the following 
information:

a. Exact date;
b. Time;
c. Location;
d. How contact was initiated; and
e. Names and addresses of any non-police witnesses to 

this contact.

QUESTION:

ANS\«IER:
a. October 3, 1974;
b. Approximately 11:03 P.M.;
c. Rear of 739 Vollintine, Memphis, Tennessee;
d. Pursuant to a call with regard to a prowler in a 

residence on Vollintine, my partner and I proceeded
^  lx 1 ^  4— X » wl. -w* ■ w ■j WV.-.C1 uxwAi wiicrxc: wc:  w c r x c :  m e  u  Ljy  u x i e  x e o x ^ a e i i u

of 737 Vollintine, who advised us that there was 
a prowler in the house next door. At this point 
I went to the police vehicle, got my flashlight, 
and advised my partner what the resident at 
737 Vollintine had told me. I went to one side of 
the house and my partnez" went to the other side. 
When I got to the corner on the west side of the 
house, I saw the subject coming out of the rear 
of the house and running toward a chain link fence 
in the rear. I located him with the flashlight, 
ordered him to halt, but after telling my partner 
where the subject was located, the said subject 
started over the fence and I fired one shot from 
my service revolver.
Daisy Mae Bell Statts, 737 Vollintine, Memphis, 
Tennessee.

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30. If the answer to interrogatory No. 28 is in the 
affirmative, please state:

a. Whether you made any written reports of this 
contact, formal or informal;

b. If so, the nature of such reports, specifying the 
number of any official form used;

c. Whether the reports are still in existence; and
d. What person or agency presently has custody and 

control of such reports.

QUESTION:

ANSWER:
a. Yes;
b. Description of events. I do not know of any official 

form used in making this report;
c. Yes;
d. Homicide Division, MemOiiis Police Department.

QUESTION:
31. If the answer to interrogatory No. 28 is in the affirmative, 

please indicate whether any other officers were present at the time 
of your contact with Edward Eugene Garner.

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
32. If the answer to interrogatory No. 31 is in the affirm­

ative, please indicate the following information:
a. The full names of any officers present during 

your contact with Edward Eugene Garner;
b. The present assignments of the officers listed in 

answer to 30(a).

ANSWER:
a. Leslie Burton Wright;
b. Ward 128.

GU
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33. If the answer to interrogatory No. 28 is in the affirm­
ative, please indicate whether any police department disciplinary 
proceedings were initiated against you as a consequence of alleged 
misconduct on your part arising out of your contact with Edward 
Eugene Garner.

ANSWER:
No. However, as is routine in such incidents as this, I was 

suspended with pay pending an investigation of the matter.

QUESTION:
34. If the answer to interrogatory No. 3 is in the affirm­

ative, please indicate:
a. The nature on which such proceedings were initiated;
b. The date on which such proceedings were initiated;
c. The nature of the charges against you; and
d. The outcome of these proceedings and the dates on 

which the proceedings were concluded.

ANSWER:
Not Applicable.

QUESTION:
35. If the answer to interrogatory No. 28 is in the affirm­

ative, please state:
a. Describe in detail the area where you came into 

contact with Edward Eugene Garner;
b. Describe in detail what if anything you observed 

Garner doing when you came in to contact with him;
c. Describe in detail what, if anything you did upon 

coming into contact with Garner;

ANSWER:

QUESTION:

a. See answer to Interrogatory No. 29 above;
b . See answer to Interrogatory No. 29 above;
c. See answer to Interrogatory No. 29 above.

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QUESTION:
36. If the answer to interrogatory No. 28 is in the 

affirmative, please state whether, at the time you came in to 
contact with Edward Eugene Garner, you believed that he had 
committed or was about to commit a crime.

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
37. If rhe answer to interrogatory No. 36 is in the 

affirmative, please indicate as follows:
a. The nature of the crime and its official 

designation under Tennessee or Memphis law;
b. Your reasons for believing that Garner had 

committed or was about to commit the crime in 
question.

ANSWER:
a Breaking and entering;
b. I had been told that someone was breaking into 

the house. I saw him running from the house. I saw a window 
broken out and a garbage can placed underneath the window which 
appeared to be the way he gained entrance to the house at the 
rear southwest corner.

QUESTION:
38. Were you issued a service revolver for use in carrying 

out your official responsibilities.

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
39. If the answer to interrogatory No. 38 is in the affirm­

ative, please indicate the make, model and calibre of the service 
revolver issued to you.

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ANSWER:
Model 10, four inch Smith and Wesson, 38 calibre, six shot 

revolver.

QUESTION:
40. What type of ammunition do you ordinarily use in your 

service revolver?

ANSWER:
38 special ammunition.

QUESTION:
41. What type of ammunition were you using in your service 

revolver on October 3, 1974.

ANSWER:
38 special ammunition.

QUESTION:
42. Is ammunition used in your service revolver issued 

to you by the Memphis Police Departn\ent?

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
43. Did you attempt to apprehend Edward Eugene Garner?

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
44. If the answer to interrogatory No. 43 is in the 

affirmative, please indicate whether you fired your service 
revolver in an attempt to apprehend Edward Eugne Garner.

ANSWER:
Yes.

G3

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45. If the answer to interrogatory No. 44 is in the affirm­
ative, please indicate whether Edward Eugene Garner was wounded as 
a consequence of your firing your service revolver.

QUESTION:

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
46. If the answer to interrogatory No. 45 is in the affirm­

ative, please indicate what areas of the body of Edward Eugene 
Garner were wounded as a consequence of your firing your service 
revolver.

ANSWER:
Right side of head, just above the ear.

QUESTION:
47. If your answer to interrogatory No. 45 is in the 

affirmative, please indicate whether you attempted to obtain medical 
treatment for Edward Eugene Garner after he was wounded.

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
48. If the answer to interrogatory No. 47 is in the negative, 

please explain your failure to attempt to obtain medical treatment.

ANSWER:
Not Applicable.

QUESTION:
49. If the answer to interrogatory No. 47 is in the affirm­

ative, please indicate the following:
a. When you sought medical assistance;
b. How you went aboub seeking assistance;
c. From what source you sought assistance;

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ANSWER:

d. Whether you were successful in obtaining 
assistance;

e. When assistance was obtained;
f. The nature of assistance provided;
g. By what person, persons, institutions, or 

agencies was assistance provided.

a. Immediately;
b. By calling an ambulance;
c. Memphis Fire Department;
d. Yes;
e. In a matter of minutes;
f. Immediate medical attention;
g. Memphis Fire Department and Memphis City Hospitals,

QUESTION:
50. Prior to October 4, 1974, did you have any occasion to 

fire your service revolver in making an arrest or attempting to make 
an arrest for alleged violations of the law?

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
51. If the answer to interrogatory No. 50 is in the 

affirmative, please indicate the following with respect to each 
such occasion:

a. Date;
b. Place;
c. Nature of the alleged violations of the law 

that served as the basis for your arresting or 
attempting to arrest a subject, including official 
statute designations of the crimes;

d. Whether injury occurred as a result of the firing 
of your service revolver;

e. To whom injury occurred;

Go
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f. The nature of the injury.

ANSWER:
a. October 3, 1974;
b. 737 Vollintine, Memphis, Tennessee;
c. Breaking and entering;
d. Yes;
e. Edward Eugene Garner;
f. Bullet wound to the head.

QUESTION:
52. Did you receive any training in the use of firearms 

prior to your assuming your duties as an officer of the Memphis 
Police Department.

ANSl-ffiR:
Yes.

QUESTION:
53. If the answer to interrogatory No. 52 is in the affirm­

ative, please indicate as follows:
a. When you received training;
b. Where you received training;
c. The nature of the training;
d. The person or persons conducting the training;
e. The duration of the training;
f. Whether officers were graded or rated on their 

performance during the training period;
g. What grade or rating you received.

ANSWER:
a. Training started in July, 1973;
b. Memphis Police Academy.
c. Instruction in the use, capabilities and 

proficiency of firearms;

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d. Captain Coletta, Sgt. Hart, Officer McElhaney, 
Officer Goldsby, Officer Thurman and an F.B.I. 
Instructor whose name I do not know. There may 
be others but these are all that I recall at this 
time.

e. Approximately a week and a half.
f. Yes;
g. I received a passing rating, however, I do not 

recall the exact rating I received at the time. 
There should be records on file with the Police 
Department in the custody of Captain Coletta 
indicating my exact rating.

QUESTION:
54. Have you received any training in the use of firearms 

since you assumed your duties as an officer of the Memphis Police 
Department.

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
55. If the answer to interrogatory No. 54 is in the 

affirmative, please indicate as follows:
a. When you received training;
b. Where you received training;
c. The nature of the training;
d. The person or persons conducting the training;
e. . The duration of the training;
f. Whether officers were graded or rated on their 

performance during the training period;
g. What grade or rating you received.

ANSWER:
I am not sure of the specifics with regard to the additional 

training. My recollection is that I have been to the firing range 
since I assumed my duties as a Police Officer but I do not recall 
the specifics. There are records on file with the Police Department

G7- 17 -



indicating my subsequent training.

QUESTION:
56. Have you ever received instruction with respect to 

circumstances under which lethal force should be resorted to by 
you in carrying out your official duties?

ANSWER:
Yes.

QUESTION:
57. If the answer to interrogatory No. 56 is in the 

affirmative, please indicate the following:
a. The nature of any instruction you received 

with regard to the use of lethal force;
b. When you received such instruction;
c. From whom you received such instruction;
d. The form in which such instruction was communicated 

to you.

ANSWER:
a. We had instruction in the law in this area and 

what circumstances we were justified in using 
our firearms;

b. Sometime in August, 1973;
c. Ronald Krelstein, legal advisor to the Memphis 

Police Department;
d. Classroom instruction.

QUESTION:
58. Prior to October 3, 1974, did you have any contact 

with or knowledge of Edward Eugene Garner?

ANSWER:
No.

GS
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' f

59. If the answer to interrogatory No. 58 is in the affirm­
ative, please indicate the nature of your prior contact with or 
knowledge of Edward Eugene Garner.

ANSWER:
Not Applicable.

The undersigned, being first duly sworn, makes oath that the 
facts stated in the foregoing answers to Plaintiff's interrogatories 
are true to the best of his knowledge, information and belief.

QUESTION:

E. R. ,flYMON

STATE OF TENNESSEE 
COUNTY OF SHELBY

SWORN TO AND SUBSCRIBED before me this day of
, 1975.

Notary oPublic
, My Commission Expires:

' (MT'

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I, Henry L. Klein, Attorney, hereby certify that a copy of 
the foregoing Answer of Defendant, E. R. Hymon To Plaintiff's 
Interrogatories has been mailed this day of November,
1975, to Walter L. Bailey, Jr., Esquire, 901 Tenoke Building, 
Memphis, Tennessee 38103, and Drew S. Days, III, Esquire,
10 Columbus Circle, New York, New York 10019.

________________ y  -j /  v_ -C  ________ ________________

Henry/ L. Klein

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