A District Court judge from Shawnee County dismissed a lawsuit last week against a couple that Jesse Dimmick kidnapped in southwest Shawnee County. District Judge Franklin R. Theis decided to dismiss the suit on January 9.
Dimmick is a fugitive facing a murder charge in Colorado. He was leading Kansas authorities on a chase on September 12, 2009 when enforcement stop sticks blew out the tires of the stolen vehicle he was using.
The vehicle stopped in a front yard in Dover, a community in southwest Shawnee County. The home is owned by Jared and Lindsay Rowley, just newlyweds at the time.
The couple told authorities that Dimmick entered their home and confronted them at knifepoint. They were able to gain his trust before he fell asleep. Police officers entered the home and ordered Dimmick onto the ground before Topeka police officer Guy Gardner’s rifle accidentally fired. The shot hit Dimmick in the back.
In May of 2010, Dimmick was convicted in Shawnee County District Court of four felonies. Two of those including counts of kidnapping. His sentence was handed down at 10 years and 11 months in prison.
Dimmick is currently in the Adams County Detention Center in Brighton, Colorado. He is being held there on the murder charge dating back to September 2009 for the murder of Michael Curtis.
A civil lawsuit was filed against the city of Topeka and Gardner by Dimmick in September of 2010. He was seeking damages above $75,000, which includes medical expenses. The trial for that lawsuit is set for April 12.
In September, the couple sued Dimmick for $75,000 in damages.
A response was filed by Dimmick, who was acting as his own attorney, on October 21. His response was seeking that the Rowley’s lawsuit be dismissed and he stated a counterclaim against them as a result of breach of contract. In the counterclaim Dimmick was seeking $160,000 in hospital bills and $75,000 for pain and suffering.
Dimmick, in his counterclaim, stated that the couple backed out on an oral, legally binding contract he had with them. The agreement was that the couple would hide him from police for an unknown amount of money.
The Rowley family is represented by attorney Bob Keeshan, who says his clients deny agreeing to anything with Dimmick. The attorney also said that agreeing to such a thing would have been illegal because it was made under duress. On November 4, a motion to have the Dimmick suit against the Rowleys dismissed, was filed.