drunk cop beats up his neighbor after refusing to pay topless dancers for table dances. yes cops are a moral becon that the rest of us should follow Original Article Former Chandler officer fights for reinstatement Lindsey Collom The Arizona Republic May. 4, 2005 12:00 AM CHANDLER - A former Chandler police officer is fighting for reinstatement after losing his job over the suspected drunken assault of a neighbor. Brian Delbert Rader, 32, went before a Chandler hearing officer Tuesday to appeal his dismissal from the force after two years of service. Rader was fired in March when an internal investigation determined the officer had violated several city personnel rules. The appeal comes amid ongoing criminal proceedings to determine if Rader assaulted his neighbor, Chris Malham, on Jan. 17. The altercation happened in the doorway of Malham's apartment, which was one building over from Rader's. Rader was charged with aggravated assault and criminal trespass, both felonies. His trial is scheduled for July. A felony conviction would be cause for his state peace officer certification to be revoked and make the city hearing moot. The Rader hearing comes just a week after the city's Merit Board voted 5-0 not to give fired Chandler police Officer Dan Lovelace his job back. Lovelace, 40, was fired in 2002 after he shot and killed an Ahwatukee woman outside a drugstore. In this case, Rader was said to be "extremely intoxicated" when he tried to enter Malham's apartment, and punched and bit him when he resisted, police records show. Rader claims to have no knowledge of the assault at the Olive Grove Apartments. Rader told police he was beaten up earlier that night outside a nearby topless bar, and while he didn't initially remember the details, they have since become clear in recurring dreams. Rader's attorney, Dale Norris, said his client was disoriented, not intoxicated, when he showed up on Malham's doorstep. Norris said a doctor who examined Rader determined he suffered a concussion, presumably during a scuffle outside Sonny's Bar & Gentleman's Club. Club manager Eugene Williams testified Tuesday that he contacted Rader twice that evening when he failed to pay for lap dances in a timely manner. Williams previously told police Rader left the bar before paying for the second set of lap dances and had to be summoned by two bouncers. He later said he didn't know whether the bouncers were involved, but Rader did not appear to be injured when he escorted him outside the building. Defense attorney Norris said police could not definitively say that alcohol played a dominant role in Rader's behavior: no breath or blood samples were taken to determine his blood-alcohol content. Police records show Rader admitted to drinking a bottle of wine and at least three shots of whiskey that day, beginning about noon. His current claim is that he started at 2:30 p.m. Testimony is scheduled to continue Thursday. Reporter Edythe Jensen contributed to this article.