A lawsuit has been filed by one Indiana family after they were pulled over for a seatbelt violation and then harassed by police.
Lisa Mahone said that on September 25, Hammond police drew their guns, smashed the car window and used a Taser on her boyfriend after the traffic stop. The couple and their two children, a 14-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl, were on their way to a Chicago hospital to visit her dying mother.
Mahone provided the police with her proof of insurance and driver’s license and then the cops asked Mahone’s boyfriend, Jamal Jones, for his ID. Jones explained that he didn’t have an ID because of a recent ticket. When Jones reached into his book bag to show them the ticket, the officers drew their guns. The couple’s 14-year-old son began recording the incident on his cell phone.
Mahone called 911 after the cops dew their weapons and reported that she feared for her life. She told the operator that she hoped to reach the hospital before her mother passed away. “I said, ‘Oh my god, he’s pulling me over like I robbed a bank,’” Mahone told WFLD-TV.
The officers told Jones they had drawn their weapons because they didn’t know who Jones was and they questioned his intent.
“That’s why I have my windows up,” Jones told police. “I’m not no harm to you right now. I got my kids in the car and you’re drawing your weapon.”
Jones told WFLD that he was scared to leave his frightened children in the car, and he was also afraid to exit the vehicle because the officers taking an aggressive approach.
Jones tried to give the ticket to police but they refused to take it.
“You all got a white shirt?” Jones asked, requesting a supervisor. “I just want to know what’s going on.”
“Look at my shoulder, dumbass,” an officer tells him. “I’ve got bars.”
Mahone continued speaking to the 911 dispatcher as Jones spoke to the police officers with the passenger window cracked about three inches.
“Why do you say somebody’s not going to hurt you?” Mahone said. “People are getting shot by the police.”
It was at that moment, one of the officers used a baton to smash open the window. The children screamed as chards of broken glass filled the vehicle. One cop reached in to the car and used a Taser on Jones, who screamed as the electric shock current jolted him for approximately three seconds.
Jones was then pulled out of the car, was placed in handcuffs and arrested for resisting law enforcement and refusal to aid an officer.
A federal lawsuit was filed by the couple on Monday against the Hammond Police Department saying the officers overstepped their authority.
“They had no probable cause, one, to even ask Jamal to get out of the car, or two, to engage in excessive force in tasering and arresting him,” their attorney, Dana Kurtz, told the TV station.
The police department defended the officers in a statement, saying they intended to ticket Jones, as well, for a seat belt violation.
“In general, police officers who make legal traffic stops are allowed to ask passengers inside of a stopped vehicle for identification and to request that they exit a stopped vehicle for the officer’s safety without a requirement of reasonable suspicion,” police said.
Kurtz argued that there was no search or any evidence to suggest criminal activity, and Jones maintains he was wearing a seat belt when the car was stopped and police never told him about their intention to ticket him.
Worth noting: One of the police officers involved in the incident has been previously named in two excessive force lawsuits and the City of Hammond settled both cases with cash payouts.
Watch video of the incident by Kurtz Law Offices:
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