“Everyone is scared of law enforcement,” says Keith Denny

A Walhalla attorney says he likes law enforcement, but the cases of three of his clients lead him to conclude that people are scared of law enforcement.  Keith Denny called a news conference today to outline three law lawsuits that he is pursuing against the Seneca Police and the Oconee Sheriff’s Office over what he claims are unlawful arrests.  One of those cases is that of a former Pickens woman, Tori Morton, who was arrested while in the company of Zachary Hammond, shot dead by a Seneca policeman in 2015.  Denny today blamed former Seneca officer Mark Tiller, who lost his job in the aftermath of the Hammond shooting death, and indicated that the circumstances of what happened in the back parking lot of a By-Pass restaurant remain under investigation.  Denny called for justice.  He introduced Morton who, he said, has needed two years to rebuild her life to reach the point where she wanted to sue.  Morton wiped away tears, spoke softly, and said very little in response to reporters’ questions.  Denny seeks the dismissal of a charge of simple possession of marijuana against his client, which he says has been held over her.  Earlier in the news conference, Denny introduced two other clients–Justin Roach and Doug Hedden.  He called them victims of unlawful arrests in  separate drug and domestic violence investigations.  In Roach’s case, Denny claims, that a police video used to depict him as a drug offender is not him.