Officer Won’t Be Tried Again In Assault Case

A police officer who was accused of hitting a handcuffed female prisoner without provocation won’t face a second assault trial, Pierce County Prosecutor John Ladenburg said Tuesday.

There is no reason to believe another trial of Paul Jagodinski, 34, would end more conclusively than the 3-3 jury deadlock Jan. 13 that followed more than eight hours of deliberations in Pierce County District Court, Ladenburg said.

Jagodinski was accused of hitting Tamara Smith, accompanied by another officer in a jail elevator Aug. 17, because he didn’t like the way she looked at him. Two months later, Police Chief Philip Arreola insisted that charges be filed, saying he would not tolerate police brutality.

Jagodinski said he acted in self-defense after the woman bumped him.

He has been assigned to desk duty since the episode.