Elgin cop accused of attacking amusement park workers

Elgin police confirmed Tuesday putting a veteran cop on restricted duty after his weekend arrest on an assault charge at a Michigan amusement park.

Officer Lance Adams III, 50, of Huntley, and his nephew Jamie Smith, 29, of South Bend, Ind., each face a misdemeanor assault charge in Muskegon County.

County police say that at 9:33 p.m. Saturday, Adams, a 9-year-veteran of the Elgin force, attacked a pair of workers at Michigan Adventure after the workers refused to let him and his nephew onto a skycoaster called the Ripcord.

A worker suspected the pair was intoxicated and denied Adams and his nephew entry onto the ride for their own safety, reports said.

According to a police report: Adams pushed a 21-year-old park employee in the shoulder near the ride's entrance. Adams also grabbed the 29-year-old ride's manager by the neck and pushed him. When the manager tried to fight Adams off, Smith punched him in the forehead.

Both men said they were not hurt.

When county police approached Adams, he immediately said he was an off-duty officer who worked for the Elgin Police Department.

"Lance was very difficult with me and told me that I better do my job right," the deputy wrote in his report. " ... I further tried to explain to Lance that this was an assault complaint and that I understood that he was a police officer, but I had to investigate."

When it came time to arrest Adams, he made a scene with his "loud, boisterous and foul language," and told the arresting deputy, "You better write your report right, i's dotted and t's crossed, because I'm coming after you."

Both men have since paid bail and each refused a breath test once at the station, police said.

But Adams' stay at the jail didn't go well, according to the police report, which says he resisted police, forcing them to take him to the ground, where he continued to disobey instructions to give them his hands. Other charges are pending, authorities said.

Adams has been assigned to desk duty while the case plays out in Michigan, Elgin police spokeswoman Sue Olafson said, adding that the city is running its own probe.

"For starters, we need to understand what Michigan is charging him with because assault in Michigan might be different than assault in Illinois, so we need to investigate all sides of this," Olafson said.

Adams is a member of the police department's honor guard, which performs at police-related ceremonies.