Tag: police brutality

Cop ignored dying man in back of hot police car, watched TikToks and sent ‘intimate’ texts instead: lawsuit

An Oregon cop allegedly left a mentally ill man to die in the back of a hot police car while the officer watched TikToks and texted about “snuggles,” according to a lawsuit.

Nathan Bradford Smith, 33, died of heat stroke aggravated by meth use during a July 2024 arrest when Coos Bay police officers allegedly left him in a parked patrol car to watch TikToks and send intimate texts instead of getting him medical help, according to a lawsuit filed by Smith’s family Wednesday.

The lawsuit blasts the city of Coos Bay, and Officers Benjamin Martin, Tristan Smith, and Wesley O’Connor for ignoring signs of obvious medical distress in Smith, accusing them of negligence and “deliberate interference.”

Smith, who had schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, was picked up by cops after multiple police encounters where he was found smoking methamphetamine and later speaking “quickly and incomprehensibly,” according to the lawsuit obtained by The Post.

At roughly 5 p.m. July 7, officers found Smith wearing a heavy coat and rain pants on the ground outside a Motel 6, the lawsuit detailed.

“One of the 911 callers indicated they were concerned for Mr. Smith’s safety,” according to the lawsuit. “Another caller indicated that Mr. Smith was on the ground ‘flailing around,’” the lawsuit said.

Smith was struggling to breathe as he was handcuffed by Martin, Smith and O’Connor while still on the ground, according to a state police officer who reviewed the body camera video of the incident.

He was barely able to get in the police cruiser, and his eyes were closed as he gasped for air, the lawsuit said.

Keep reading

Veteran With PTSD Can Sue the Cops Who Arrested Him for Panhandling and Tased His Service Dog, Court Rules

A homeless veteran arrested for panhandling—and whose service dog was tased by law enforcement—can move forward with his lawsuit against police and the city, a federal court ruled this week.

Apart from the individual implications, the case also raises broader questions about the constitutionality of anti-panhandling ordinances, which have suffered defeats in various courts in recent years.

In October 2021, law enforcement in Gastonia, North Carolina, arrived at an intersection where Joshua Rohrer was standing on a median after a 911 caller phoned in to report Rohrer was “using [his] dog to make people feel sorry” for him. An officer requested backup from the Gastonia Police Department (GPD), and the scene quickly became somewhat of a circus, with several patrol cars and a slew of officers dispatched to address an alleged panhandler.

An officer demanded to see Rohrer’s identification, after which he furnished his Veteran ID card. Police said that did not suffice, promptly arresting him and ultimately booking him for solicitation and resisting arrest. (You can watch the bodycam footage here and decide for yourself if he resisted arrest.)

During that interaction, an officer tased Rohrer’s service dog, Sunshine, who ran off and was later hit by a car, killing her.

The government would ultimately drop the charges against Rohrer. But even after the ordeal, law enforcement has continued to subject him “to a relentless campaign of harassment” according to his complaint against the City of Gastonia and several officers with the GPD. It alleges violations of his First and Fourth Amendment rights, including for excessive force and the unreasonable seizure of his service animal.

Rohrer’s complaint also notes that the GPD has posted “hundreds of statements that belittle and disparage Mr. Rohrer and spread false and misleading information about the incident” on social media.

“You also know that two grand juries supported the charges and that Mr Rohrer and his private legal team could have challenged the charges in court but that’s not what they chose to do now was it?”the city posted on its official GPD page. “Instead they accepted the plea deal that was offered to him. Perhaps to avoid having an actual court date where evidence and testimony would have been presented. Who knows why they chose to accept the deal offered.” Rohrer did not, in fact, plead guilty to anything tied to the October arrest.

Keep reading

‘It’s Mind-Boggling’: State Trooper Called In K-9 Units, Helicopters, Officers with Rifles Just Because He Thought a Teenager Played ‘Ding-Dong Ditch’ at His Home, Families’ Lawsuit Says

A Delaware state trooper who was fired and jailed for violently assaulting two teenagers after learning one of them played a game of “ding-dong ditch” at his house is now facing a lawsuit from the boys’ families.

The lawsuit comes one year after Dempsey Walters pleaded guilty to assault and deprivation of civil rights, both felony charges. He also pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of assault in the third degree and two misdemeanor counts of official misconduct in connection with the incident in August 2023.

According to a grand jury indictment, Walters spotted one teenage boy in his neighborhood on Aug. 17, 2023, and launched a verbal altercation after believing the boy was engaging in misconduct. He and local police took the boy home. The teen was not arrested or charged.

After that incident, officials say that Walters searched the teen’s background in a law enforcement database.

Three days after the altercation, a different teenage boy was walking in Walters’ neighborhood with three of his friends and decided to play “ding-dong ditch.” Ring doorbell footage shows the 15-year-old boy running up to the front door of Walters’ home, kicking it, and running away.

Walters’ girlfriend, who was at home at the time, called Walters and told him about the prank.

Walters, who was on duty, immediately headed home and called state troopers and officers from other law enforcement agencies for help.

Believing that the first teen he encountered in his neighborhood on Aug. 17 may have been involved, he looked up the boy’s address and went to his home, according to the indictment.

When the teen came to the front door, Walters “forcibly pulled” him out of the home and “forced him to the ground, causing injuries,” the indictment states. Walters cuffed the teen and detained him in the back of a police vehicle. The teen was later released without charges.

After detaining the first teen, Walters was contacted by a state trooper who located and detained the 15-year-old who kicked Walters’ door. Walters immediately headed to the scene.

Dashcam video shows the moments a trooper caught up with the teen and his friends. He’s seen ordering the boys to the ground, then pushing the 15-year-old to the ground as the boy screams, and swearing at him repeatedly.

When Walters arrived at the scene, he saw the teen “face-down on the ground” and the trooper struggling to cuff his hands behind his back, the indictment states.

Almost immediately after arriving, Walters is seen running over and placing his knee on the back of the teen’s head and neck, causing him to cry out in distress.

After the boy was cuffed and placed in the back of a trooper’s cruiser, Walters “turned off his body-worn camera and walked to the police vehicle,” the indictment states.

While the teen was seated in the vehicle with his hands cuffed behind his back, Walters struck the boy “in the right side of his face, causing an orbital fracture,” which broke his eye socket.

However, the punch had been recorded since Delaware law enforcement body-worn cameras capture 30 seconds of buffer video, without audio, when they are deactivated.

After reviewing the bodycam footage, state police contacted the state attorney general’s office.

Walters was immediately suspended from his job. A month later, he was indicted. After pleading guilty, he was sentenced to one year in jail and four years of probation.

“The Defendant’s rampage against two kids, and his subsequent attempt to conceal his misconduct, was brutal, dishonest, and unacceptable. It was a flagrant and felonious violation of his oath and an insult to his fellow officers,” Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings said in a statement.

Keep reading

Missouri Police Officer Shoots, Kills Blind & Deaf Dog …Community Outraged

A police officer in Missouri shot and killed a blind and deaf dog this week … and while the department’s saying the cop feared contracting rabies — the community’s calling BS.

Teddy — a five-year-old, 13-pound shih tzu mix was killed in Sturgeon, Missouri after escaping his yard. The owner gave the dog some water and called the police … who The Washington Post reports shot the dog twice within minutes of arriving.

Check out the body cam footage … little Teddy’s running around the field — away from the officer at first before turning around and moving toward him, though not seemingly in an aggressive way.

Keep reading

“Settlement tsunami”: Chicago spends more than double city budget on police misconduct settlements

The City of Chicago is searching for financial solutions amidst hundreds of pending police misconduct cases, spending more than double the $82 million budget.

Eight years ago, police burst down the door of the Mendez family home unannounced, pointing guns at Hester and Gilbert Mendez, and their sons Peter and Jack (who were 9 and 5 at the time) – only to find they’d raided the wrong apartment.

After years stuck in the legal pipeline, between COVID delays and multiple changes in the judge presiding over the case, Mendez et al. v. City of Chicago finally began on Monday, April 21, 2025 in Courtroom 1941 at the Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse in Chicago. 

The Mendez family was seeking financial compensation for their rights being violated and the trauma their children endured. 

The city of Chicago has already spent more than $164 million in taxpayer money this year on police misconduct settlements and judgments – more than double its $82 million budget. With hundreds of cases pending, including from people alleging torture by notorious former officers, the Mendez case illustrates how these situations often play out: the city launches into a costly trial, putting families through trauma and stress, only to settle for a large sum at taxpayer expense. Officials say there’s a better way to do it – offering substantial settlements earlier – not the unfairly small settlements that the city often uses to avoid trial, as lawyers see it; or ideally avoiding police misconduct in the first place. 

During the Mendez family’s trial, a now 17-year-old Peter Mendez described on the stand how he was traumatized on the evening of November 7, 2017. “My life flashed before my eyes, my heart was pounding, and I thought maybe I could die.”

To this day, the event has left Jack, the youngest child, with the same recurring nightmare of police shooting his mother, cuffing and taking his father away to jail, and separating him and his brother as they get taken to different orphanages. 

Keep reading

Bird brains! Moment man is surrounded by police and arrested after feeding pigeons in town centre

This is the shocking moment a man was surrounded by police officers for feeding pigeons.

The incredible footage includes the man, wearing a beanie, being handcuffed and being pushed against a police car door as three officers surround him. 

A large bag of birdseed can be seen next to him on the kerbside.

The nicked bird feeder can be heard saying to officers ‘I feed birds that’s my religion’ whilst shoppers watch on.

Footage later shows the distressed man hunched over and being led into the back of the police van where the door is shut and an officer can be heard saying he is ‘under arrest’.

The incident happened in Ellesmere Port town centre, in Cheshire, on Friday last week.

Tony Gath who witnessed the incident said he was ‘disturbed’ by what he had seen.

Tony said: ‘It was disgusting behaviour, all they had to do was educate the man on where he can and can’t feed the birds, then send him on his way.

‘I’m disturbed that they felt that level of intimidation and power was acceptable at all, not just in public.’

According to Wirral Council’s official website there are ‘no laws’ that the council can effectively use to stop people feeding wild birds.

But Environmental Health may be able to ‘take action in significant and excessive cases’ where rotten food waste is accumulating or the bird feeding can be shown to be the cause of an infestation of rats or mice.

Cheshire Police said the council had previously reported to the police that feeding of the birds in the area was causing an ‘increase in vermin’.

They also said officers only arrested the man who was feeding birds after be became ‘verbally and physically aggressive’ towards an officer.

A spokesperson for the force said: ‘At around 2.15pm on Friday 27th June, officers on patrol in Ellesmere Port town centre spoke to a man who was feeding birds in the area.

‘The council had previously reported to police that the feeding of the birds was causing an increase in vermin in the area and that they needed the details of the male to speak to him.

‘An officer attempted to engage with the man, but he became verbally and physically aggressive towards the officer.

‘He was then arrested for a public order offence – the man subsequently calmed down and was de-arrested.’

Keep reading

Moment Border Patrol use huge explosion to blast their way into house with woman and two children

A California mother-of-two was left in tears after Border Patrol agents used a massive explosion to blow down her front door during a terrifying early-morning raid caught on camera.

The shocking scene unfolded in Huntington Park, Los Angeles, where Jenny Ramirez and her two young children, ages one and six, were jolted awake by a deafening blast before a dozen armed agents in full tactical gear stormed the home.

Surveillance footage obtained by NBC Los Angeles shows agents planting an explosive device on the door before detonating it – shattering a window and sending shockwaves through the quiet neighborhood.

Moments later, around a dozen federal agents charged toward the house with weapons drawn.

Inside were Ramirez, her boyfriend Jorge Sierra-Hernandez, and their two children. Speaking through tears, Ramirez told NBC it was one of the loudest explosions she’d ever heard.

‘I told them, ‘You guys didn’t have to do this, you scared by son, my baby,’ Ramirez told NBC. 

Ramirez said she was given no warning about the raid and insisted that everyone in the home is a U.S. citizen.

According to Ramirez, the agents said they were searching for her boyfriend, who she claims was recently involved in an accidental collision with a truck carrying federal officers.

Keep reading

No Charges for Cops Who Executed Innocent Grandpa on His Own Property—With a Bullet in His Back

Another day, another state-sanctioned killing swept under the rug. This time, it’s the story of Osvaldo Cueli, a 59-year-old grandfather who was shot and killed by two plainclothes Miami-Dade police detectives on his own land. There were no body cams, no warning, and no charges.

According to a closeout memo from the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, detectives Mario Fernandez and Jorge Sanchez won’t face any consequences for killing Cueli. The memo claims there wasn’t enough “competent evidence” to determine whether the shooting was justified. That’s always the excuse, isn’t it?

Despite the nine bullet holes in the windshield of the officers’ unmarked truck, originally spun as proof Cueli had fired on them, it turns out those shots were fired from inside the truck. The cops fired through their own windshield. They were in unmarked vehicles with tinted windows and, according to the family, never announced themselves.

Cueli had walked out to the edge of his property with a firearm holstered at his waist. He thought he saw trespassers. His daughter said he rarely carried a gun but had grown concerned about safety. That day, two black trucks pulled up to the gate. According to his son, they blocked the entrance and opened fire without warning. His father never raised his weapon. They didn’t identify themselves. They didn’t turn on any lights. They just started shooting.

“They both came really close to the trees, and they blocked us in,” Osvaldo, Cueli’s son, told New Times. “They started shooting from inside the car, and they didn’t have any lights on. They didn’t announce themselves. They didn’t put down the windows, and the windows were blacked out.”

Cueli was shot in the back. The autopsy confirmed it. The bullet passed through his aorta and lung before lodging in his arm. The cops say they found a pistol two feet from his body. But the family says there was no gun near him in the video footage. Their attorney is calling out the memo for its omissions and contradictions.

As Cueli lay bleeding on the ground, one of the officers casually stepped over his body and said, “We identified ourselves.” His daughter captured the moment on video.

Keep reading

Florida TSA agent arrested for allegedly attacking 79-year-old passenger at airport

A Transportation Security Administration agent was arrested for allegedly assaulting a 79-year-old passenger at Fort Lauderdale’s airport, with police saying she was “forcefully pushing her,” a report said. 

Janiyah Wilson-Robinson, 21, of Margate, was taken into custody Wednesday following the incident at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, according to WPLG. 

The station, citing a Broward Sheriff’s Office arrest report, said Wilson-Robinson attacked the woman from Palm Beach Gardens by “forcefully pushing her,” causing her to fall to the ground and hit her forehead. 

The passenger, who was at the airport that day traveling on a JetBlue flight, suffered “minor bruising,” deputies reportedly added. 

It wasn’t clear what led to the alleged confrontation. 

The Broward Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond Saturday to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

Keep reading

Florida sheriff warns anti-ICE protesters ‘we will kill you’ if you so much as ‘throw a brick’

A Florida Sheriff delivered a stern warning to anyone planning protests against ICE or President Trump — threatening to respond to violence with deadly force.

“If you throw a brick, a firebomb, or point a gun at one of our deputies, we will be notifying your family where to collect your remains because we will kill you, graveyard dead. We’re not going to play,” Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey said Thursday.

“If you try to mob rule a car in Brevard County, gathering around it, refusing to let the driver leave in our county, you’re most likely going to get run over and dragged across the street,” the Republican sheriff said during the immigration news conference.

“If you spit on us, you’re going to the hospital, then jail. If you hit one of us, you’re going to the hospital, jail, and most likely get bitten by one of our big, beautiful dogs we have here,” Ivey warned.

The sheriff’s deadly declaration comes as a slew of anti-Trump and anti-ICE protests are expected to continue across the nation this weekend.

Keep reading