Frequently Disciplined Cuyahoga County Jail Officer Under Investigation Again After Drunk and Disorderly Conduct Arrest in Elyria

[image-1]Cuyahoga County corrections officer Eric Ambler is under investigation by the county, again, after he was arrested for disorderly conduct (intoxication) by Elyria police on November 20th.

That evening Elyria police were dispatched to Boomer’s Bar on Broad St. after a call of an intoxicated male brandishing a knife, according to an Elyria police report. When officers arrived, they found a man outside the bar. After frisking the suspect, they found a six-inch knife in his pocket. The suspect couldn’t tell officers his name or address. Officers searched his wallet; his driver’s license identified him as Eric Ambler.

After being handcuffed, Ambler became dead weight, according to the police report narrative. He had to be carried and pulled into the back seat of a police car. Once inside, “he began yelling at Officers, stating he was going to ‘kick their ass,'” according to the report. In addition, while en route to the Lorain County Jail, Ambler “began violently kicking the plastic divider in the patrol vehicle.” Once at the jail, “due to Ambler’s increasingly violent behavior,” officers placed him in a restraint chair.

Cuyahoga County spokesperson Mary Louise Madigan confirmed that the investigation is open but couldn’t relay specifics because it has not yet been completed.

Ambler’s discipline file is already extensive and varied. He has been suspended or issued a written reprimand by the county no fewer than 10 times since 2005.

On April 15, 2015, the county issued Ambler a 3-day suspension without pay after he was found guilty of an OVI offense in Middleburg Heights on February 28, 2015. (He was also originally charged with carrying a concealed weapon in the case.)

On June 9, 2015, the county issued  him a 2-day suspension for breaking Rule #70 in connection to a May 5th incident. “You were engaged in conversation with several inmates in the POD you were assigned to. As a result of your conversation which you maintain was jocular in nature, a physical altercation ensued between three of the inmates who became offended by the conversation. Medical treatment was necessary and rendered for these inmates due to the physical altercation.”

On November 10, 2011, he was given a 1-day suspension for accumulating more than 30 AWOL hours in a single year. He also received written reprimands for missing hours three other times over three years.

On April 2, 2008, he received a written reprimand for breaking Rule #29. (Verbally abusing a fellow employee, supervisor, or inmate.)

On January 16, 2007, he was given a 1-day working suspension for breaking Rule #11. (Attendance violation.)

On December 11, 2006, he was given a written reprimand for breaking the same rule.

And on March 21, 2005, he was suspended for 16 days without pay by the county for breaking Rules #20 (failing to submit a thorough and complete incident report) and #82 (excessive use of force on an inmate).

We’ll update you on the status and outcome of the county’s investigation when it concludes.

This article appears in Dec 14-20, 2016.