Tyron McAlpin Sues City Of Phoenix Over Brutal Police Beating
Tyron McAlpin Sues City Of Phoenix Over Brutal Police Beating And Wrongful Arrest
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UPDATED: 12:30 p.m. ET, Nov. 21, 2024
Tyron McAlpin, a deaf Black man with cerebral palsy who was beaten by Phoenix cops, is suing the city for $3.5 million, according to Phoenix New Times.
Earlier this week, Jesse M. Showalter, McAlpin’s attorney, filed a notice of claim against the city of Phoenix and the three officers involved in the police beating. The notice alleges that officers Kyle Sue and Benjamin Harris assaulted Tyron McAlpin, and then officer Jorge Acosta fabricated a police report to justify McAlpin’s arrest.
From Phoenix New Times:
For $3.5 million, the notice of claim states, the city could “resolve all claims” McAlpin might bring in a lawsuit, “including, but not limited to, claims for wrongful arrest, malicious prosecution, excessive force, negligence, assault, battery, defamation, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
“As a result of the unjustified assault by Officers Harris and Sue, Tyron suffered severe physical, mental, and emotional pain and suffering,” Showalter wrote in the notice. “As a result of the false charges brought by Officers Harris, Sue, and Acosta, Tyron was falsely arrested and was deprived of his freedom for 24 days.”
Source: YouTube screenshot
The two Phoenix police officers responsible for brutally arresting Tyron McAlpin have been placed on administrative leave as the criminal charges they brought in the incident were dropped.
Tyron McAlpin had been charged with aggravated assault and resisting arrest following an incident in August that bodycam video footage showed him being repeatedly punched and tased by officers Benjamin Harris and Kyle Sue.
McAlpin’s attorneys argued that the charges were baseless and asserted that the officers should be held accountable for their unlawful use of force, something that may actually happen after Phoenix Police Sgt. Phil Krynsky confirmed on Monday that Harris and Sue were effectively suspended from their positions pending an investigation, according to Fox 10 Phoenix.
Harris and Sue were placed on administrative leave days after Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell announced that her office was dropping all criminal charges against McAlpin.
In a statement, Mitchell said after she reviewed “a large volume of video recordings, police reports, and other materials that have been forwarded to my office” from people and groups that included the local NAACP chapter, she “made the decision to dismiss all remaining charges against Mr. McAlpin.”
While the criminal charges were dismissed, McAlpin’s lawyers are still fighting for justice by threatening legal action and suggesting Phoenix authorities are not being forthcoming.
On Monday, McAlpin’s lawyer renewed month-old formal requests for more documents in the case.
“[McAlpin’s lawyer Jesse] Showalter says the city of Phoenix still possesses a number of documents that he requested more than a month ago – additional video, audio recordings, and additional witness interviews – all of which he says do not help the police department’s case.
He says the department’s apparent refusal to release the information is a violation of Arizona’s Public Records Law.
“We anticipate that if we don’t receive these additional documents, there will be a public records lawsuit in the first week of November,” Showalter said.
What happened to Tyron McAlpin?
According to a police incident report obtained by ABC 15 Arizona, McAlpin was arrested Aug. 19, after he allegedly attempted to steal a bike from a white man named Derek Stevens at the Circle-K gas station. Officers Harris and Sue, responding to the incident, located McAlpin at a nearby Dollar Tree store based on Stevens’ description. The report claimed that McAlpin “engaged in active aggression,” swinging punches at the officers with closed fists.
McAlpin’s lawyers assert that he was punched in the head at least 10 times and tased four times before the officers wrapped their arms around his neck. In their report, officers Sue and Harris claimed that McAlpin failed to comply with their demands. However, McAlpin’s attorneys contend that body camera footage and surveillance video contradict the officers’ statements, pointing out a clear reason for his inability to comply.
“It’s hard for me to see how the city can come out and say with [a] straight face that it is meeting the DOJ report head-on when this man is being charged with assault on police officers for this incident,” said Jesse Showalter, one of McAlpin’s attorneys.
“The answer is easy. He’s deaf. He couldn’t understand what they were doing. And he had done nothing wrong,” Showalter continued. “Everything I see in that video is Tyron just trying to avoid being harmed by these officers and that only makes them increase the escalation and the violence that they’re using.”
Stevens may have lied about McAlpin, lawyers say
McAlpin’s attorneys are urging Phoenix and the Department of Justice to assess the need for federal oversight of the police department. They contend that issues such as racial bias, excessive force, inappropriate use of tasers and chokeholds, and violations of the rights of individuals with disabilities must be addressed.
There are also concerns regarding the veracity of Stevens’ allegations against McAlpin. According to ABC 15 Arizona, Circle K employees reported that Stevens was causing disturbances and refused to leave the store prior to McAlpin’s arrest in August. During the incident, Stevens claimed he was assaulted by a Black man and pointed to McAlpin across the street. His “assault claim was later refuted by store employees and surveillance video, records show,” the outlet noted.
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