LOS ANGELES - A lengthy lawsuit alleging civil rights violations, assault and battery, use of excessive force and multiple other charges was filed against Los Angeles County, the City of Compton, the L.A. County Sheriff's Department and several law enforcement officers on Feb. 2.
According to a complaint filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, the charges come from plaintiff Dalvin Price, an L.A. County man who was driving on Rosecrans Ave. on a late night in May of 2020. Protestors against the death of George Floyd were scattered along Price's route, the lawsuit said, along with police officers.
When police attempted to pull Price over, he ran his car into the meridian on Rosecrans before the intersection with Santa Fe Ave., and then ran into a parking lot to hide in a dumpster enclosure, the suit says.
The plaintiff accuses the sheriff's deputies who apprehended him of kicking and punching him while he was pinned on the ground, causing several fractured ribs and severe bruising, despite the plaintiff being unarmed, compliant and not a threat. The deputies allegedl only stopped their attack on the plaintiff when a witness, who had been filming the encounter, shouted at the officers.
The defendants include L.A. County Sheriff David Navarette, L.A. County Deputy Sheriff Edgar Cuevas and L.A. County Deputy Sheriff Edwin Barajas, as well as 50 unidentified others.
The defendants are charged with assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent hiring, training supervision and retention, negligence, false imprisonment, violations of the Bane Civil Rights Act, civil rights violations, unreasonable and excessive force, failure to intervene, conspiracy to violate Fourth and 14th amendment rights and municipal liability.
The defendants removed the case to federal court on April 2.
Price asks the court to determine appropriate damages. He is represented by The Thomas Firm.