Refugio mother sues city after officer accused of pepper-spraying her child

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correctly state the relationship between Chelsea Berlanga and Michael Paredes.

On March 12, 2021, Chelsea Berlanga and her boyfriend were on their way to Portland for a pediatrician appointment for the newest member of their family — their 3-day-old son.

The Refugio couple got into their Jeep and began making their way out of town when they were pulled over between Swift and Houston streets in Refugio by then-Refugio police officer Lee Jordan.

Berlanga's boyfriend, Michael Paredes, was driving the vehicle while the new mother sat in the backseat with their baby. The 31-year-old father had an outstanding warrant on suspicion of unlawful possession of a firearm.

What happened next sparked a series of events spanning nearly a year: a Texas Rangers investigation, a grand jury indictment, Jordan's termination from the Refugio Police Department and a civil suit filed by Berlanga against the city of Refugio.

Jordan moved to arrest Paredes on the outstanding warrant that day. During the arrest, the officer deployed pepper spray after — Jordan's attorney says — Paredes did not cooperate with instructions.

A lawsuit filed in December against the city of Refugio by Berlanga disputes those claims, stating Jordan's actions as an employee of the city caused pain, suffering and mental anguish to the mother and child. The lawsuit states the two were pepper-sprayed twice by Jordan and needed medical attention.

Just days before the arrest, the Refugio City Council named Jordan the 2020 Officer of the Year — which was his first year on the small police force. That same council placed him on leave in the weeks after a criminal indictment and, in January, voted to fire him.

The possession of a firearm by a felon charge against Paredes was still pending as of Wednesday, Refugio Police Chief Enrique Diaz said. Paredes declined to comment to the Caller-Times about the incident.

Jordan's lawyer, Eric Perkins, said his client acted appropriately within his duties as a peace officer and had sufficient probable cause to make the stop and arrest.

The criminal investigation

Jordan was placed on administrative leave after the Texas Rangers, the investigative arm of the Department of Public Safety, began their investigation into the March 12 incident.

The findings of that investigation were presented to a Refugio County grand jury, which on April 6 indicted Jordan on two counts. Count one was injury to a child, a state jail felony, and count two was official oppression, a Class A misdemeanor.

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The injury to a child charge stemmed from Jordan "recklessly" causing bodily injury to the infant by "discharging aerosol self defense spray" into the vehicle, according to the indictment.

The official oppression charge, which would later be dismissed by a district judge, came from Jordan's knowing mistreatment of the infant with use of force under the color of his office, according to the indictment.

Perkins disputed the injury to a child charge, stating video taken from the incident shows the child was not struck with pepper spray.

"We know the incident took place, but the allegation involves injury to a child, but the child was not injured. The whole premise is a faulty one," he said. "We're perfectly confident that Officer Jordan didn't injure anybody who didn't deserve to be injured."

Assistant District Attorney Tim Poynter is employed in the office of District Attorney Rob Lassmann, who serves Refugio, Goliad and DeWitt counties. Poynter is prosecuting the case against Jordan.

Poynter declined to answer further questions by the Caller-Times about the case, citing ongoing proceedings.

The case is being tried in 135th District Judge Kemper Stephen Williams' court.

Lesser charge is dismissed

On June 21, 2021, Williams granted a motion to quash the official oppression charge at the request of Jordan's attorney.

The judge dismissed the charge because prosecutors failed to sufficiently specify how Jordan "mistreated" the infant and what "use of force" was directed toward the child, according to the indictment.

Perkins said those words — "mistreated" and "use of force" — can cause a jury to improperly interpret their meaning when measuring the evidence against the charge since they are not defined in the Texas Penal Code.

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Perkins said he was glad the judge "saw through" the lack of specificity on the lesser charge.

Following the dismissal of the official oppression charge, Poynter told the Victoria Advocate the DA's office would not seek to reindict Jordan on the misdemeanor charge.

“(The official oppression charge), while serious, is a misdemeanor,” Poynter told the newspaper. "The felony charge is sufficient for the offense committed.”

Berlanga v. city of Refugio

On Nov. 9, 2021, Berlanga, the mother in the vehicle during the March arrest, filed a lawsuit against the city of Refugio.

In the lawsuit, she seeks compensation for the damages caused to her and her child as a result of the arrest by Jordan, who was employed by the city.

Specifically, she is seeking compensation to cover the medical expenses — both for passed and future care related to the incident, and for relief "in the maximum allowed by the court" excluding costs, pre-judgment interest and attorneys' fees, according to the lawsuit.

Berlanga, 27, retained McAllen attorney Mauro Ruiz to represent her in the lawsuit. Ruiz's firm did not return calls from the Caller-Times this week.

The lawsuit alleges Berlanga and her child suffered multiple injuries after Jordan pepper-sprayed them twice during the stop, which Ruiz states was performed without probable cause.

Berlanga suffered swollen lips, stinging eyes, blurred vision, difficulty breathing, rashes and blisters around her nose and lips, and burning in her throat as a result of the incident, according to the lawsuit.

The infant suffered difficulty breathing, irritated skin and swollen eyes, and he had a "blister-like rash" on his face and a "pimple-like irritation" on his chin, according to the lawsuit.

The infant was treated and released from Victoria Women and Children's Center at Detar Hospital in Victoria. Berlanga was taken to Refugio Memorial Hospital and then to Victoria Woman and Children's Center at DeTar Hospital, according to the lawsuit.

"Their injuries were proximately caused by negligent acts or omissions of the Defendant who negligently used tangible property without provocation or justification on two occasions," the lawsuit reads.

The lawsuit requests a jury trial.

In a response filed on Dec. 17, 2021, lawyers representing the city of Refugio sought governmental immunity and argued that all actions Jordan took were based on probable cause, according to the document.

Perkins, Jordan's attorney, said the damages described in the lawsuit will "not be borne out by the video or the testimony of people who know the factual circumstances of what happened."

What is the latest?

The week after Jordan's indictment by a grand jury, on April 13, the Refugio City Council unanimously voted to place him on administrative leave without pay.

Following the filing of the lawsuit, the council met in executive session on Jan. 25, 2022, and unanimously voted to terminate Jordan's employment at the Refugio Police Department.

Refugio Mayor Wanda Dukes and Refugio Police Chief Enrique Diaz both declined to answer questions about the decision and Jordan's tenure at the department, citing pending criminal and civil litigation.

"It is disappointing that (the City Council) would assume the existence of a lawsuit somehow underscored the allegations made against Mr. Jordan. ... He did everything by the book," Perkins said.

The termination was a "general discharge," meaning Jordan could seek a position as a peace officer elsewhere since his Texas Commission on Law Enforcement license was not affected, Perkins said.

However, a conviction on the injury to a child charge could bar Jordan from serving as a peace officer again. A Class A misdemeanor or higher conviction is a lifetime disqualification as a peace officer or jailer, according to TCOLE's website.

Injury to a child is a state jail felony that is punishable by 180 days to two years in state jail. A fine of up to $10,000 could also be assessed.

A jury trial for Jordan is scheduled for May 2, 2022, according to court documents.

Chase Rogers covers government and industry in South Texas. Support local journalism with a subscription to the Caller-Times.

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Mother sues city after Refugio officer accused of injuring her child