Source: Reddit screenshot
A Black man is suing an Alabama police department over a 2023 incident in which he was tased by a police officer while handcuffed and for no discernable reason whatsoever.
Micah Washington was 24 in December 2023, when Reform Police Officer Dana Elmore confronted him while he was changing a flat tire. After Washington refused to show Elmore his ID, which he said he had the right to do since he had done nothing wrong, Elmore cuffed him, tased him, and then asked him, “Do you want it again?” while he cried out in pain.
This week, attorneys for Washington filed a $20 million lawsuit against the city of Reform and two officers, Elmore and her husband, former Pickens County Sheriff’s Deputy Jody Elmore, who she reportedly called to join in on the arrest despite him working in a different jurisdiction.
“The lawsuit highlights the excessive force, deliberate indifference, malicious prosecution and wrongful detainment and arrest” of Micah Washington, who is now 25, and two others, said attorney Leroy Maxell Jr.
The suit is filed on behalf of Washington, his friend Jacorien Henry, and Washington’s brother, Shakeem, who was 17 at the time.
The ordeal began Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023, when Washington was changing a flat tire on a Pickens County roadway, not far from his aunt’s house, Maxwell said. Washington and others were going back and forth to the house to get equipment needed to change the tire when Dana Elmore stopped to question Johnson.
Maxwell said the officer asked him what was going on and asked him for identification. Washington told the officer he was not doing anything wrong, knew his rights and didn’t have to provide that information if he wasn’t detained.
Washington pulled out his phone to start recording and Elmore used a stun gun on Washington, which caused him to drop to the ground. He was then handcuffed.
So, before the act of police brutality that was shown on camera, Elmore had already committed a prior act of police brutality on Washington just because he pulled out his phone to record her, you know, just in case she committed some kind of actor of misconduct such as — oh, I don’t know — police brutality.
As we previously reported, Washington wasn’t far from his aunt’s house when he was on the side of the road to change his tire, so his friends, the other plaintiffs in the suit who were with him at the time, were going back and forth to the house to get the equipment needed. So, Elmore approached him to see what was going on and demanded to see his ID, Washington refused to show it and Elmore got her little blue ego bruised, which caused her to tase him, cuff him while he was on the ground, make him stand up, tase him again, tell him to “shut the f*ck up” as he screamed, and threaten to tase him a third time before telling him to “shut your b*tch ass up” once again.
Washington was initially charged with trafficking fentanyl, obstructing government operations, resisting arrest and first-degree possession of marijuana. The fentanyl charge was later dismissed after it was determined the substance Elmore found on him was, in fact, not fentanyl. (It’s unclear how that mixup happened.) Maxwell said earlier this week, “We fully expect the remaining charges against Mr. Washington to be dismissed as well.’’
“They must be held accountable for the irreparable physical, mental and emotional injuries they caused,’’ he said of Elmore and her husband. “My clients are clear victims of police misconduct, racial bias, and systemic racism.”
“They were targeted for simply existing as African American men,’’ he added.
According to the Associated Press, Washington’s attorneys also allege that the marijuana found on him had been planted by the officers.
After the altercation, Elmore was placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation. It’s unclear what the current status of her employment is, but if she’s still a cop at all, it’s just another indication that the entire system of policing in America is the problem. It ain’t just a “few bad apples.”
SEE ALSO:
Wrongful Death Lawsuit Seeks Justice For Black Man Tased To Death
Family Of Church Deacon Tased To Death By Atlanta Cop Welcomes $3.8M Settlement
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